House explosion in Seven Sisters leaves two children and adult injured

One woman and two children have been seriously injured after a house was destroyed in an explosion in south Wales.

Neighbouring properties and vehicles have been damaged in the blast at Seven Sisters in Neath Port Talbot.

Fourteen properties were evacuated following the incident on Church Road.

Both children were flown by air ambulance to Southmead Hospital, Bristol and the woman was taken to Morriston Hospital, Swansea.

South Wales Police said all three have suffered serious injuries.

A former firefighter was one of the first to get into the remains of the house and pulled the adult free.

Jeff Davies said he was one of "three or four" people who scrambled to remove rubble and debris to reach those inside.

"I could hear the woman screaming, I entered the property then and started moving debris out then to remove her.

"I actually pulled the woman out of the property.

"The house was demolished, flattened, the house wasn't safe.

"You don't think of that, you just think of someone trapped in there."

He said he understood the children were rescued from the front of the house.

Mr Davies said there was a small fire in the house as he began freeing the trapped woman.

"It is a bit surreal, I didn't stop to think about it," he added

"The young lady, the mother was trapped, I could see her.

"She was very brave."

The rescuer said the entire community had been shocked by the explosion and have been rallying around those forced to evacuate.

A spokeswoman for South Wales Police said the cause of the explosion was being investigated.

"The road will remain closed overnight and diversions are being put in place.

"Around 14 properties have been evacuated and Neath Port Talbot council have opened a rest centre with full support for these residents," the police said.

Community councillor Gary James said: "We live further up in the village and all we hear is this massive bang and what happened then was a plume of dust and smoke blew up but then we were concerned personally whether people were in it."

Kirsten Alison Williams, who was visiting family nearby, said the explosion made their conservatory shake.

"My father-in-law rushed up the drive and saw people running across the road," she said.

"What shook me the most was a small, baby teddy bear was there laying on top of the car roof."

Mid and West Wales Fire and Rescue Service said crews were called to the scene at 14:05 BST.

Utility company Wales and West Utilities said it sent emergency engineers to assist.

"We are working with the emergency services to make the area safe and to investigate the cause of the explosion," said gas emergency service manager Sarah Burgess.

Neath Port Talbot council leader Rob Jones thanked the emergency services for their swift response and said the council "stands ready to offer whatever support is required".

"My thoughts and those of my council colleagues are with those who were injured in the explosion," he said.

"I know that Seven Sisters is a close-knit community, and that many will be feeling a mixture of shock and sadness at this time."