Neighbour 'acted on instinct' when rescuing man trapped after Birmingham house explosion

A neighbour who rescued a man trapped under rubble after an explosion at a house in Birmingham says he "acted on instinct".

Harley Seccombe had heard the explosion from down the road in Dulwich Road in Kingstanding on Sunday (June 26) evening.

He ran down the street and saw smoke and checked around the back of the houses to see if there was anyone there and heard someone shouting.

Harley said: "So I hopped over a fence and saw this hand sticking out of the rubble and I had to, I shouted for more help.

"A few more people arrived after that but we just started digging him out of the rubble and we managed to save him, as the fire was getting closer and closer and we managed to get him out of the building onto a mattress and out to the front of the house."

Harley Seccombe describes the moment he saw a hand sticking out of the rubble.

The wounded man remains in a "life-threatening" condition after the blast after he was taken to hospital.

But it was confirmed that a woman had lost her life in the blast.

Four other men suffered minor injuries and were discharged by paramedics.

Harley said he couldn't believe the man had managed to survive after being trapped under the rubble.

Harley Seccombe said he is "lost for words".

Parts of the road will remain closed off as it is feared the houses either side of the explosion could collapse.

Emergency services will continue their investigation into the cause of the gas explosion.