Soft toys are seen in an exposed room of the property
(Picture: PA)A neighbour who ran towards the Thornton Heath explosion that killed a 4-year-old girl has spoken of pulling rubble away from a “badly burned” woman following the devastating blast.
A girl was found dead and three others were injured after the house collapsed following an explosion on Galpin’s Road just after 7am on Monday.
Martin Phillips, 41, was putting his shoes on to go to work when he heard the blast, which he said sounded like someone kicking in his front door - despite living two streets away.
Mr Phillips ran towards danger where he found the homeowner frantically looking for his wife and son amongst the wreckage.
He said a firefighter shouted “be careful mate” as he climbed the rubble to join the search.
He told The Standard: “I told the husband that you have got to slow down because you could cause another collapse.
“He said ‘I have to find my wife and son.’ I asked whether they had called out their names. I told everyone to stop and listen for any response.”
An uncle, living next door, was also looking amongst the rubble screaming: “I can’t find my niece. She was in the bedroom but she’s not there now, she’s gone.”
After getting people to quieten down, Mr Phillips said he heard a woman’s voice at the back of the house.
He added: “The husband had been at the top of the house, the son was upstairs in the bedroom but the wife was in the kitchen downstairs and had most of the house fall on her.”
The woman was pinned by a fallen floor joist on her shoulder.
“Me and a firefighter started to pull rubble off her and chuck it down”, he said.
“She was screaming out in pain, I told her ‘we’re coming’.
“I told her not to move or panic. For someone in that situation, she was extremely calm, answering questions coherently. I don’t think I could have been so calm.
“I told her ‘I know it’s easy for me to say but can you bear with us and we will try and get this off you as soon as we can without hurting you.’
“She asked ‘Where am I?’ and I said ‘I believe you’re in your bathroom’.
“And she said ‘No, I was downstairs in the kitchen the toilet is upstairs.’
“The toilet was now by her head. She was trapped and was begging for her son.
“She was badly burned but was saying ‘I can still smell gas. It’s been like that for two weeks’.”
Mr Phillips said: “I couldn’t stand around and just watch. The firefighters were only just getting there. The scene was astronomical and I knew the fire service would be thin on the ground. I just went to where I knew someone was.”
He said the uncle of the killed girl, who lived next door, desperately asked him if he found her but he could only shake his head.
“I’m devastated for him. I take comfort in the fact I did what I could as a non-professional even though I couldn’t find his niece.”
Mr Phillips claimed that he had smelt a strong gas smell on the road the night before the fatal blast.
He added: “I just wanted to do what I could to help. There were so many people standing round screaming but I knew if that was my family I would want somebody to help me. That’s all I did.”
On Tuesday, children had written touching tributes in chalk on the ground near the scene.
“Spread your wings” has been chalked alongside drawings of hearts and rainbows beside the police cordon. Several bouquets and teddies have also been left at the scene.
Around 100 people have been housed in nearby hotels with one claiming authorities said it could take five to 10 days before they could go home.
A spokeswoman from gas distribution company SGN, which is the gas emergency service in the area, said in a statement: “Following the explosion in Galpin’s Road, Thornton Heath, earlier today, our deepest sympathies are with the family of the child who has tragically died as well as those who have been injured.
“We’d like to reassure everyone that our engineers are working closely with the emergency services to establish the cause of the explosion. Given the ongoing police investigation, it is inappropriate to comment any further at this stage.”
