Neighbours describe site of gas blast

The scene at Stanley Road as emergency services dealt with blast

Residents within a wide radius of South Harrow felt the force of a gas explosion which demolished two homes.

Bhargav Busa, 23, lives at the end of Stanley Road where the blast happened and was one of the first people to arrive on the scene.

He described how his house shook and he imagined it was an earthquake - until he saw smoke and dust rising up a few houses away.

"The whole house was gone," said Mr Busa.

I ran round to Stanley Road and skidded 10ft on broken glass Aron Chandler Eyewitness

"We heard a woman's voice from the rubble. Myself and some other people went over there and she was under the building material. She was injured and said there were two more people in the house."

Mr Busa helped pull the young woman out of the wreckage. He said she was able to move and speak but was badly shaken.

Student Dharik Tailor arrived at the scene with friends.

"We heard a voice saying 'help' inside the rubble and bricks.

"We told the police, and a fire engine had just come in time to deal with the problem."

Dan Llewelleyn-Hall lives opposite the house where the blast happened and had his windows and door blown out.

"I heard an enormous explosion - bricks and shrapnel sort of sent into the house and through the windows - doors blown through, screams," he said.

"I went downstairs, surrounded by a cloud of dust and managed to get my back window and tried to sort of re-gather myself.

"Within a couple of minutes, it was swamped by police. I looked out the window and the two houses were completely razed to the ground."

'Broken glass'

Aron Chandler was in nearby Rayners Lane when the force of the explosion blew curtains up.

"I ran round to Stanley Road and skidded 10ft on broken glass on the road."

Amelia Baldron, 56, who lives in adjacent Northolt Road and was unable to return home for a number of hours, heard the blast at about 2130 BST.

"It was like a bomb," she said. "Then I thought it was my boiler - but I turned on the TV and saw it was a gas explosion."

Daniel Evans, who lives 15 minutes away, was watching TV when there was a loud bang and his flat started shaking.

He followed emergency vehicles into Stanley Road.

"I've walked round the corner and I've just seen literally no house at all left, and there's glass, bricks, smoke, dust everywhere," he said.