Worker killed in gas blast at pie factory
A MAN died and another was left fighting for his life yesterday after an explosion sent a fireball ripping through a pie factory.
The body of the dead man, 38, lay trapped under rubble for several hours because part of the factory roof collapsed after the blast at 5.30am.
He has not been named but is known to be from Halifax, West Yorkshire.
The injured man, a 23-year-old from Huddersfield, was in a critical condition last night at Huddersfield Royal Infirmary.
Five other men were working at the town’s Andrew Jones pie factory when the blast tore through it. They suffered minor injuries and were described as “walking wounded”.
Staff had been working into the early hours baking the firm’s award-winning pies for distribution and sale over the Easter Bank Holiday.
The cause of the blast is unknown but the fire service said it was not being treated as suspicious. There were unconfirmed reports that a gas explosion is suspected.
More than 40 firefighters from across West Yorkshire raced to the factory after the blast.
They spent hours using cutting equipment to free the body of the dead man in hazardous conditions, with the entire building ruled at risk of further collapse.
A police spokesman said: “Due to structural damage at the bakery, there have been difficulties in extracting the body of the deceased.”
Police are working with fire investigators and health and safety officials to establish the cause of the blast.
The factory supplies a number of Britain’s top supermarkets, butchers, farm shops and sandwich outlets.
Its website carried a message last night: “Due to unforeseen circumstances, the pie factory and shops will remain closed until further notice.”