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Liverpool Echo
Liverpool Echo
World
Kit Roberts & Gemma Jones

eBay shopper horror warning as heater causes huge explosion

An eBay shopper has issued a warning to others buying from the site after the item they bought exploded.

Sharon and Ray Baines had bought a stove to cut their gas bills - but it could have cost them their lives. Quick-thinking Sharon and Ray Baines had to take evasive action to get the heater out of their Blurton home before it went off 'like a bomb'.

Ray, 68, had taken the dog for a walk and turned on the stove to warm up the house for when Sharon came downstairs. But on his return at around 7.30am, he noticed that the flames on the stove were much higher than they should have been, reported Stoke-On-Trent Live.

READ NEXT: Fire crews rush to residential street after early morning fire

The pensioner managed to manhandle the appliance out into the back garden. He even tried to use a hose to douse the flames but to no avail.

After calling the fire brigade, the pair alerted their neighbours. And as everyone was standing at the front of the property, the full canister of propane exploded just meters away with an almighty boom.

CCTV captured the moment the blast sent a huge fireball into the sky, causing damage to the outside of their property. But Sharon and Ray believe the consequences could have been far worse had they not taken decisive action.

Sharon, 52, said: "It was a new one I'd bought off eBay, we had one of those self-fill bottles. We'd filled it up two or three times so nothing was wrong with that.

"My husband got up to walk the dog, I was still in bed. He switched it on and let the dogs out, and came back to find the gas wasn't on."

What was left of the heater after the explosion (User submitted)

"We noticed that the flames at the front of the fire were getting higher and higher. He realised that the flames were getting worse, and picked it up and took it to the back door.

"He ran back in shouting to call the fire brigade. I dialled 999 and knocked on the neighbours. We were all at the front and there was a massive explosion. A fire ball came over the top of the house.

"There was metal from the fire, it ended up at the front of the house. The fire service said if it had been indoors it would have taken the roof off. We were very lucky.

"We had fire inspectors round to look. We'll never know the truth but he thinks it was a faulty fire.

"We'll need three new windows, fence panels, and the back door but it could have been a hell of a lot worse."

The pair had purchased the fire from a seller on eBay for £109.99. They had hoped it would save them money on their heating bills, which have been as high as £400 a month despite them only switching the heating on when they have a bath.

Sharon added: "We're getting £400 or £500 bills, we only switch on the central heating when we go to have a bath. We haven't had that on and the bills are still coming in." Now however, Sharon and Ray want to warn others against buying a gas heater after their lucky escape.

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