An elderly neighbour has described how a gas explosion which destroyed a house in east London brought back “serious memories” of the Second World War and said she “will never know” how nobody was killed.
The blast in Ley Street, Ilford, sent debris flying into the road and sparked a huge blaze in the mid-terraced property on Tuesday afternoon.
Averil Young, 87, who lives opposite the building said: “I was watching the tail end of a film yesterday afternoon, and all of a sudden something just went, kaboom! And there was this great big red flash. And I thought, oh no, what’s happened now?
I'm 87 years old, so I've lived through the Second World War, and it brought back serious memories
“I went to the door, and the whole roof, masonry was going flying, children were coming out of the two local schools, how nobody was killed, I will never know.
“I’m 87 years old, so I’ve lived through the Second World War, and it brought back serious memories, and then it all went quiet, and there was a lot of smoke, and then all of a sudden, these flames higher than this house. High, really high. Absolutely scary, by then I’d lost it, and I was in shock.
“It was scary, I had to own up and say that, and I’m pretty cool in a crisis, but I thought it was a bomb.”
Two people were rescued through the first-floor window by firefighters and remain in hospital in a non life-threatening condition.
A third person was treated for injuries, including trouble breathing.
Isobel Rowland, 73, who also lives opposite the building, which had been converted into flats, said: “I heard a bang and I thought there was a crash but then I looked out my window and I didn’t know what to do.
“The flames were so high, I was terrified, I was shaking, I was absolutely shaking.”
Mrs Rowland said “quite a few” people lived inside the building, including a mother and son.
Station commander Darren McTernan, from the London Fire Brigade, said: “Firefighters worked hard to bring this fire under control.
“We will continue to support local residents who have been displaced.”
Around 60 firefighters tackled the blaze after emergency services were called at around 4pm.
The roof of the building was destroyed after the explosion and the rest of the building, which included the ground floor, first floor and a loft conversion, was destroyed by the fire.
Two neighbouring properties were also damaged.
The cause of the fire is under investigation.
