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MP seeks answers over fatal house explosion

Danny Fullbrook
BBC News, Bedfordshire
Qays Najm/BBC Richard Fuller, with short white hair and goatee, is stood near a police van and wearing a charcoal suit with a blue shirt.Qays Najm/BBC
Richard Fuller said he would be asking questions about the two gas-related incidents at Cleat Hill - one of which proved fatal

An MP said he would investigate how a fatal house explosion happened, which has left neighbours unable to return home.

One man died and a woman was critically injured in the blast on Cleat Hill in Bedford on Saturday.

In July, residents evacuated their homes when contractors struck a pocket of natural gas while drilling a borehole at a property to install a heat pump. Saturday's explosion occurred at the same place, neighbours told the BBC.

Richard Fuller, MP for North Bedfordshire, said: "Here we are, a few weeks later, with a very similar looking incident with very tragic outcome. Why was that allowed to happen?" The Health and Safety Executive (HSE) said it was helping police inquiries.

Ant Saddington/BBC A drone shot of a destroyed detached house close to other large houses that are untouched. Police tape and emergency vehicles fill the road outside.Ant Saddington/BBC
A house on Cleat Hill was destroyed after an explosion on Saturday morning

In the summer, residents were told gas was found 100m (328ft) underground, which was then capped to control the release.

At the time, the discovery was described as a "one in a million" incident by the fire service.

Conservative MP Fuller said: "We need to look at why mistakes potentially were made in the assessment of the situation in the summer and the situation we find ourselves in now.

"That's where I will be asking the government some questions, to really get to the bottom of what those assessments were."

Google A driveway to a property that has been turned into a construction site, containing construction vehicles, metal pipes and a portable toilet. The sign on the metal fence that cordons off the site says, "Danger, borehole drilling".Google
In July, a Google Street View vehicle captured borehole drilling at a property on Cleat Hill in Bedford

Some Cleat Hill residents have been concerned it could be weeks before they can return home and criticised the lack of information from authorities.

The MP added: "The main immediate issue is to make sure my local residents get the chance to get back into their home and there's a schedule for people to do that.

"There is a gap in information, particularly from the Health and Safety Executive. I would urge [it] to reach out perhaps with daily updates, so people know what's going on."

A HSE spokesperson said: “We are supporting the police-led investigation, providing technical expertise in connection with the explosion."

It added there was a separate investigation under way into the circumstances of the leak in July.

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