Properties had to be evacuated after Stannington gas cuts

A mother in a Sheffield suburb affected by cuts to gas supplies has told how she and her daughter were told to leave their home in the middle of the night because of the risk of an explosion.

Caroline Kirlew, 44, was among hundreds of people in Sheffield left without gas for almost a week after a water main burst in the Stannington area, flooding the gas network with hundreds of thousands of litres of water.

Ms Kirlew said she was left "in shock" after being told to leave her house by an engineer from Cadent, which runs the network, after a major build-up of gas in her property.

She said: "I had to get my little girl out of bed. He said 'don't touch anything, don't touch any light switches'. I didn't even have any time to take the cat.

"It's all very scary. If I had doubted myself I would have gone to bed and we would have been in a very different situation."

More than 1,000 properties lost their gas supply after the water main burst on Friday, 2 December. Some residents reported water pouring from their meters and appliances.

Engineers have been working around the clock to clear water from the gas network and restore supplies.

Ms Kirlew said she had put her daughter Eva, six, to bed and was about to go to sleep herself when she smelt gas.

She said: "But then I doubted myself and thought no they've told everyone the gas is off so it can't be.

"But the smell of gas was really strong. I went into the kitchen and it had filled the kitchen."

A Cadent engineer responded to her call. She said: "He was so alarmed he said I needed to evacuate immediately."

She said she was told there was "a perfect mix of gas and air to cause a significant explosion".

"It was a very very close miss, if I had gone to bed, who knows what could've happened," she added.

Ms Kirlew said her neighbours on either side were also told to leave, including an elderly woman who left in her slippers after an engineer shouted through her letterbox to wake her up.

She said the incident had an impact on her daughter's wellbeing.

"My little girl was hysterical, she was woken up from her sleep, she had no idea what is going on, there are people shouting... she's not been sleeping well, I've not sleeping well," she said.

As temperatures dropped below freezing this week, Ms Kirlew has spent six days showering at relatives' houses and heating her own home with a portable heater.

She has been rotating it between rooms to try and keep her daughter warm.

She added: "It's like a war zone, to see people cold people and hungry, people desperate, people with medical needs, people in tears, all the roads dug up all the driveways dug up.

"We're all shocked at whats happened, we're all shattered, it's been traumatic and heartbreaking."

Ms Kirlew said she has asked for a full investigation into the gas leak.

Cadent said when the water entered the network, the pressure caused gas to enter some properties on Ms Kirlew's street.

A spokesperson said: "The decision was made to evacuate the properties and turn off the supply, which has been off since.

"We estimate that we will still be reconnecting homes up to the weekend. However, please be assured that we won’t leave until everyone is reconnected and their homes are safe and warm."

Since the weekend, more than 200 Cadent engineers have been working to restore gas to 2,000 homes in Stannington, Malin Bridge and Hillsborough which lost their supply.

Want a quick and expert briefing on the biggest news stories? Listen to our latest podcasts to find out What You Need To Know.