Jersey explosion: 29 households displaced after flats blast

The site is due to be handed back to the government once police have finished examinations

A total of 29 households were displaced as the result of an explosion at a block of flats in Jersey.

The Government of Jersey said recovery teams had spent 7,000 hours in Haut du Mont at the site of the blast that caused the deaths of 10 people.

It said teams had removed 300 tonnes of rubble and experts were working to recover personal possessions.

The site would be handed back to the government once police had finished examinations of the scene, it added.

Explosion victims: (left to right) Ken and Jane Ralph, Derek and Sylvia Ellis and Romeu and Louise de Almeida

The government said specially trained police search officers remained at the scene looking for "any remaining evidence" relevant to the investigation, and disaster recovery teams were expected to remain on site until mid to late April.

Gates are set to be installed at the site's cordon for security.

The government said displaced residents had been offered free GP appointments, and that more than half of those residents had been moved into new, fully-furnished permanent homes.

Andium Homes said it was continuing to find properties for the remaining displaced residents, and at least one block at the Haut du Mont site was "highly unsafe".

Residents not directly impacted by the explosion had been "offered the opportunity to return home to collect their smaller possessions", with plans for larger possessions to be returned, officials said.

Deputy Chief Minister Kirsten Morel said it was "an open question" as to whether residents from nearby properties also damaged could return to their homes.

"There are still some other buildings in the area where we are working to understand whether it'll be safe for the residents to go back into those apartments, or, indeed, whether they want to go back," he said.

Explosion victims: (left to right) Raymond Brown, Peter Bowler, Kathleen McGinness and Billy Marsden

Mr Morel said the emergency response and support had been "truly outstanding", with response and recovery teams ensuring "service delivery, public safety and respect for the lives that have been lost".

He said: "I am grateful for the teams who have been retrieving items for the displaced residents and bereaved families.

"They have shown immense care and professionalism, retrieving items as small [as] earrings from the scene."

The government said displaced residents were receiving continued mental health support, public health staff were also looking at measures to help people indirectly affected by the traumatic events and it was putting psychological and physical health support in place.

Follow BBC Jersey on Twitter and Facebook. Send your story ideas to [e-mail].