The man was airlifted to Royal Preston Hospital after suffering serious injuries in the blast at Sefton Terrace in Burnley, Lancashire, shortly after noon. A female patient was taken to Royal Blackburn for evaluation. Sarah Jones, 19, who lives across the street from the porch, said she was in the house when she heard a click followed by scratching noises, which she now believes were coming out of the property. “I went out and just saw black smoke everywhere,” he said. “I know the family that lives there well and when I went out their relatives were there. “I asked if anyone was in there and they told me it was the girl. It’s 17. “The neighbors took a ladder and went up to the two upper windows, but then realized that he was not upstairs, he was in the front room and he had gone to the cellar, from the floor. “She was covered in rubble and her relative had to take her out from under everything. “We brought her to my house and she said she did not think she was injured, she was more worried about how her mom would react. “She is very, very lucky.” Local councilor Sarah Hall, who was on the scene to support residents, said the incident was thought to be a gas explosion. Andy Fewings, also a city councilor, said 10 homes had been evacuated and residents were being asked to go to St Matthew Church on Albion Street. Lisa Gorton, a 42-year-old resident, said: “I just stood there and heard a loud bang as if watching a movie or a building being torn down. “I saw all the black smoke and the windows were passing and everyone was running out.” A search-and-rescue team was seen on the street Monday, along with a number of firefighters, police and gas and electricity trucks. A Lancashire Fire and Rescue spokesman said: “We have three fire trucks and our civilian search and rescue team at the scene. “We are working with other emergency services, local authorities and utilities to make the scene safe and assess the structure of the property. “Firefighters at the scene are now using an aerial ladder platform to secure the house structure by removing stones from the edge of the gable.”
