About 50 people from 35 properties were evacuated following the blast on Saturday.
A man has been found dead among the debris of a Nottinghamshire house that was destroyed by a “gas explosion”, police said.
Emergency crews were called to the incident in John Street, Worksop, at 7.39pm on Saturday and Nottinghamshire Fire and Rescue Service reported it as a gas explosion. On Sunday afternoon Nottinghamshire Police confirmed the explosion came from inside and the terraced home was destroyed.
“Significant damage was also caused to neighbouring properties,” the force added.
About 50 people from 35 properties were evacuated, the leader of Bassetlaw District Council said.
Police said: “The body of a man, aged in his 50s, was later discovered in the wreckage. Despite the best efforts of the responding emergency services, he died at the scene.”
Officers are investigating the cause of the explosion but said anyone who was in the area had been accounted for. Images on social media appeared to show a destroyed terraced house, and people reported hearing a loud bang.
The length of the house looked to have been wrecked, with bricks covering part of the street in front, in a video of the scene shared on Facebook. Some of those evacuated stayed overnight in Crown Place Community Centre which was offered as an emergency shelter.
The council found accommodation for nine households and others were staying with family or friends. Hotel and temporary accommodation has been found “for all those who have requested assistance” and the emergency shelter was closed as a result, Bassetlaw District Council leader Julie Leigh said.
Chief Inspector Clive Collings, from Nottinghamshire Police, said on Sunday: “This is an extremely serious incident that has led to a man’s untimely death. The man’s family have been informed and are being supported by specially trained officers. I have no doubt that this incident will have come as a shock to the community in Worksop.”
On X, formerly Twitter, one person asked at around 8.06pm: “Did anyone else hear a loud bang/explosion sound in Worksop North Nottingham around 30 minutes ago?”
A Facebook user posted at about 8.10pm: “I was driving back from Mass this evening, just turned into Gladstone Street from Gateford Road, when there was a terrific bang, like a very loud firework! I thought the back end had blown off my car. A house in John Street has had, presumably, a gas explosion!”
A cordon remains in place.
Mr Collings said: “It is likely that the cordon and road closures will remain in place for some time as we carry out our investigations. I would also like to acknowledge the co-operation of local residents and thank them for their patience.
“Officers will remain in the area to carry out inquiries relating to the investigation and anyone with concerns is encouraged to speak with an on-duty officer. It is an offence to fly a drone over or near to an ongoing emergency response without permission and I would ask that people refrain from doing that.
“I would also like to thank all partners, including our emergency services colleagues at Nottinghamshire Fire and Rescue Service and East Midlands Ambulance Service, who have worked throughout the night in response to this incident.”
The fire service said on Saturday that it had “a number of appliances at an incident on John Street, Worksop. This is a gas explosion”. Anyone with additional information is asked to contact 101 quoting incident 612 of April 12.