Merthyr explosion: Teen saw boyfriend go up in flames

A teenager has told how she saw her boyfriend go up in flames following a gas explosion at her home.

Hollie Lawrence, 19, and Luke Cresswell, 20, were both severely burned in the blast in Dowlais, Merthyr Tydfil on 1 February.

Hollie's father, Nial Lawrence, 54, claims he reported the smell of gas to housing association Merthyr Housing twice in the days before the blast.

Merthyr Housing has declined to respond to this claim.

This article contains some upsetting language and images

Following the explosion Hollie suffered a collapsed lung, was in a coma for eight days and her family was told she may not survive.

The Health and Safety Executive has found the explosion was caused by a leak from a gas pipe behind the units in the kitchen of the property.

Gas company Wales & West Utilities said it has received no reports of the smell of gas prior to the explosion and that the blast was unrelated to the gas mains network.

Hollie was burnt on 30% of her body, suffered a collapsed lung and was in a coma for eight days following the blast

Mr Lawrence has claimed he first complained of an "unusual gas smell" to Merthyr Housing on 24 January.

After nobody came out he said he called back to report the matter again on 30 January, two days before the explosion.

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Hollie, who was in the kitchen with Luke at the time of the blast, said she was making a cup of tea when it happened.

"I looked at Luke and he just went up in flames and I started screaming," she said.

"One moment I'm on my chair and the next I'm by the back door… I just couldn't move. I felt like it was going on for about three minutes, I was screaming in pain."

The family were housed in a hotel for four months before being moved into sheltered accommodation

Luke added: "Everything just went up in flames, I felt like I was on fire. It was a horrendous feeling, I've never felt anything like it in my life."

"I ran out and tried to turn the shower on because I felt like I was on fire, but nothing. Then I was just calling Hollie, I just wouldn't leave the house without her."

'Life in the balance'

Mr Lawrence, who had been watching a film in bed with his wife Sarah at the time of the blast, said the bed was lifted into the air and the bedroom doorframe was blown off the wall.

"It seemed like a plane just crashed into the house," he said. "That was the first thing I thought of but then straight away went 'no, gas explosion, because of the smell'.

"I just grabbed my wife... 'get out quick now'. Got onto the landing and my 13-year-old daughter was coming out of her bedroom, bawling in tears, screaming," he said.

Hollie was in a coma for eight days in hospital

Hollie said after she and Luke were out of the house with the rest of the family she began to feel numb.

"I remember looking at my hands and they were just dripping off with skin, it was all coming off."

Hollie and Luke were then taken to Morriston Hospital, Swansea, where Hollie was in a coma for eight days.

"I thought I was awake the entire time, it was horrible. It was a really painful experience," she said.

Hollie has had to end her apprenticeship as a tattoo artist due to her burns

Mr Lawrence said he Sarah were taken aside by hospital staff and told it was "minute by minute" as to whether Hollie would make it.

"Her life was in the balance for the first 72 hours," he said.

Luke said after asking doctors about Hollie's condition he was told it was not certain she was going to be ok.

"It was the most terrible news I'd ever received, because she means so much to me," he said.

He said that the first time he saw Hollie after she gained consciousness he "just couldn't stop smiling."

Hollie Lawrence and her boyfriend Luke were in hospital for about three weeks and her father Nial says he was told by doctors that she may not survive

Hollie, who was training to be a tattoo artist before the explosion, said she "can't even pick up the gun anymore".

"I feel that I've let down the people that I worked with, but they've been really good to me," she said.

"My legs are in agony all of the time, I have to have a walking stick which is a nightmare, my hands - I used to be very good at makeup, I can't do that any more.

"I had to learn how to walk again, learn how to grab stuff, I had to do everything all over again like I did as a kid."

Hollie says she has had to learn to walk again

Merthyr Housing has declined to respond to the family's claims that the smell of gas was reported to them before the explosion.

Wales & West Utilities said: "We had not been called to the property prior to 1 February, and no reports of a smell of gas in the area had been made to us. We can confirm that the incident was not related to the gas mains network.

"The pipes inside a property, such as the pipes leading into a home appliance like a cooker, are not part of the gas network that we manage."

"If anyone ever smells gas, thinks they have a gas leak, or suspects carbon monoxide poisoning, they should call us on 0800 111 999."

The Health and Safety Executive said in February that the explosion was the result of a "leak of natural gas", and that no gas safety breaches were identified.

South Wales Police announced on Wednesday it had found "no element of criminality connected to the explosion, and we will not be conducting any further enquiries into this incident".

A spokesperson for the force said: "This is now a matter for the housing association and the gas supplier."