Swansea explosion: Man who rescued boy says he's not a hero

A man who helped rescue a 14-year-old boy from the wreckage of a house that was destroyed in an explosion said he was just following his instincts.

One home was destroyed in the suspected gas explosion at the junction of Field Close and Clydach Road in Morriston, Swansea, at about 11:20 GMT on Monday.

Brian Davies, 68, died and three others, including the teen, were hurt.

Donn Fernández, 40, said he did not want to be called a "hero", adding: "No, I'm just human."

Mr Fernández, who only moved to Swansea from the Philippines one month ago, was one of those who helped rescue Ethan Bennett after the blast.

He was walking up the stairs when Mr Davies's house exploded.

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At first, he had no idea where the noise had come from but saw his front door and windows were shattered and there was "white smoke" in the air.

Donn Fernández and Donna Fontanilla only moved to the area a month ago

When he ran outside, he could see Ethan caught in the rubble of the remains of his roof so he and several others pulled him to safety.

His wife, Donna Fontanilla, 30, said: "I keep on telling him that you are brave, but he doesn't want to accept."

Mr Fernández said he did what anyone else would have done in his shoes and praised Ethan: "It's not me who saved him - it's the boy who's really brave."

Ms Fontanilla is a nurse and was at work when the blast happened.

Brian Davies has been named as the man who died following the explosion

When Mr Fernández called to tell her what had happened, her first thought was for her neighbour.

"I said, 'Oh my God, how's Brian?' because I knew he was living literally in that house. Looking at the house itself, I don't think there is a sign of life and I feel really devastated, you know - I feel bad for him, he doesn't deserve this."

The couple moved to Clydach Road in February and described Mr Davies as welcoming and friendly.

On Wednesday, they received the news that their house was too badly damaged by the blast for them to return.

Fr Jason Jones praised Donn Fernández for his quick response to the explosion

The couple's children, two-year-old Zefia and Evan, three, are still in the Philippines living with family.

They had planned for their children to move and join them in April, but those plans are on hold while the couple searches for a new home.

But Ms Fontanilla said they had been "overwhelmed" by the help of the council, their Catholic church, and the Filipino community in Swansea.

"I'd like to take this opportunity to say thank you to everyone. We really appreciate it. They are always making sure that we are quite comfortable - they've given us spare clothes, water, basic necessities for us to get through."

Their priest, Father Jason Jones, who is storing some of the possessions they were able to retrieve, said: "I think we're just very blessed that he's part of our community and so willing to risk his own life because there could have been further explosions."

Meanwhile, the RSPCA has been working to support families and their pets who were affected by the blast.

An inspector rescued one cat, Fern, from the scene of the blast, which is now being cared for at the RSPCA's Llys Nini animal rescue centre in Penllergaer.

However, they are still trying to find Fern's brother Teddy who remains missing - both pets belong to the Bennett family, whose home was wrecked in the explosion.

Ethan has been reunited with his pet cat Fern

Ethan was reunited with family pet Fern at Llys Nini after being rescued, but the cat will remain at the centre.

Sally Hyman, chairwoman of the trustees at the animal rescue centre, said: "We've been pumping out the appeal for Teddy on our social media. We've had volunteers out looking for him and Cat Protection are also on board.

"Their specialists say the best chance may be to to try to trap him overnight and they are on hand to do that."

South Wales Police said an investigation had been launched into the cause of the explosion, and the Health and Safety Executive has been informed.