Gas blast victim dies on his 56th birthday after house exploded when he went to check on it on behalf of relatives stranded in Pakistan by coronavirus lockdown
- Munir Hussain went to his relatives’ property after neighbours smelled gas
- An explosion ripped through the house while he was inside, destroying the wall
- Debris was scattered across the garden with another man injured by masonry
- Mr Hussain, 56, died of severe burns in the early hours of Wednesday morning
- His relatives, the home owners, were in Pakistan because of travel restrictions
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A man died on his 56th birthday with 90 per cent burns after being caught up in a gas explosion that destroyed a family home in West Yorkshire.
Munir Hussain had gone to the home of relatives stranded in Pakistan because of coronavirus travel restrictions after neighbours smelled gas.
A huge explosion ripped through the house, in Ravensthorpe, near Dewsbury, destroying the front wall to expose bedrooms and ground floor rooms and sending masonry flying.
Munir Hussain, 56, died in a gas explosion while checking on a relatives’ house in Dewsbury
Mr Hussain died of 90 per cent burns after the suspected gas explosion at the property
A huge ‘gas’ explosion in Ravensthorpe near Dewsbury left the interior of the house, above, completely gutted and exposed at the front and debris strewn across the lawn
Police and firefighters were called to the home in Ravensthorpe, near Dewsbury, as a blast tore through the home, killing a 56-year-old relative of the home owners
Firefighters seen attending the scene, following the massive blaze. Munir Hussain had gone to check on his relatives’ property after neighbours smelled gas
Police and firefighters attend the scene. Mr Hussain was checking on the property for relatives stranded in Pakistan because of coronavirus travel restrictions
Terrifying footage captured a blaze raging through the roof from the suspected explosion
Mr Hussain was taken to the Special Burns Unit at Pinderfields Hospital in Wakefield following the explosion with 90 per cent burns but died at 1.30am on Wednesday morning. It was his 56th birthday.
His nephew Waj Ali announced: ‘Uncle Munir, of Crescent, Ravensthorpe, has sadly passed away.’
Another male was injured by flying masonry as the explosion ripped away the front wall of the brick terraced house. Flames and smoke billowed from the house.
Eyewitnesses said the explosion made a ‘booming sound’ and ‘shook the whole street’.
One resident, who lives on a nearby street, told Yorkshire Live: ‘My dad came running downstairs and we ran out of the house because we thought it was unsafe.
‘It was a huge booming sound and the whole street was shaking.’
Another said: ‘It shook the whole street, I haven’t felt anything like it.’
The area was cordoned off while police and firefighters clear the debris from the house
A West Yorkshire Fire and Rescue spokesperson said: ‘We were called at 11.37 to reports of an explosion at a property on Crescent Walk.
‘We have crews at the scene from Cleckheaton, Mirfield, Dewsbury, Rastrick, Ossett and Morley plus the aerial appliance from Wakefield.’
West Yorkshire Police said: ‘Another male who suffered a head injury after being struck by debris was treated at the scene He was later taken to hospital for further treatment to the injury which is not life threatening.’
Firefighters assess the damage as the explosion ripped through the property in Dewsbury