The property was completely destroyed after “absolute carnage” unfolded on a quiet street in Middlesbrough at around 12.40pm on Tuesday.
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Jaw-dropping footage from nearby CCTV showed flames erupting outwards before a thick plume of smoke engulfed the house.
A loud bang and crash could be heard as debris fell from the sky, while neighbours reported thinking there was a “plane crashing”.
I put him on my back and got him out. I put him on the grass. All his skin came off like a carrier bag
Kayfee Hameed
The semi-detached home was left ravaged by the mysterious blast as cops continue to probe the cause.
Emergency services airlifted a 57-year-old man to hospital, where he remains in critical condition.
Hero Kayfee Hameed, 45, bravely pulled the homeowner from the wreckage.
He said: “Everybody was on the grass over there watching.
“When I drove past I saw the fire at the house. I jumped out and everyone was shouting ‘don’t go, don’t go’.
“I ran inside and I said is ‘anybody there?’ The man was laid down there were all rocks on his leg.
“He was just shocked. I told him to come closer because the fire was coming down. I put him on my back and got him out.
“I put him on the grass. All his skin came off like a carrier bag.”
Roofer Hameed told how there was only one person in the house.
He said he checked the two other properties damaged in the explosion for any people potentially injured or trapped inside.
Meanwhile, Sean Joseph, who lives at the back of the property, said: “I work from home and just heard a huge explosion. I actually thought it was a plane crashing”.
Joseph described the scene as “absolute carnage”.
POLICE STATEMENT
A Cleveland Police spokesperson said: “Officers investigating the house explosion in Kirkland Walk, Middlesbrough, are today continuing their enquiries into the incident.
“The scene of the explosion remains cordoned off due to the structural danger the damaged building poses.
“Cleveland Police are working closely with Midlesbrough Council, Cleveland Fire Brigade, Northern Power Grid, and other local partners, to establish the full circumstances surrounding the incident and make sure those affected by the incident are receiving the necessary support.
“The 57-year-old man who was seriously injured in the incident is in hospital in a critical condition.
“Anyone who saw the explosion, or who has any CCTV, Doorbell, or phone footage of the incident, is asked to contact police via 101, quoting reference number 113998.”
A NEAS spokesperson added: “We received a call to 999 at 12.42 this afternoon to reports of a house explosion on Kirkland Walk, Middlesbrough.
“We sent a duty officer, a clinical team leader, two emergency ambulance crews, a rapid response paramedic, a doctor, four Hazardous Area Response Teams and the air ambulance.
“One patient has been transported to the RVI by air with severe burns.”
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