Penn Road gas blast: Hopes to get Wolverhampton pensioner back in her home by winter
A Wolverhampton home reduced to rubble after a terrifying gas explosion could be restored to its former glory by Christmas.
Wendy Ayoub’s two-storey house was flattened when a gas leak ignited a blast, rocking Penn Road two years ago.
But a new house has since risen from the ruins and looks set to be completed in the coming months – with hopes to get the pensioner back home for the winter.
Neighbour Daljit Uppal said the community was looking forward to welcoming Mrs Ayoub back in following the 2015 blast.
The 50-year-old added: “We can’t wait to get her back in. We have missed her.”
Work on the foundations and frames of the house began after crumbling debris was cleared from the site last year.
Builders have since piled bricks high and completed work on the outer shell of the home, with interior works yet to be finished.
Mr Uppal said: “It’s looking nice, it’s taking shape. The house is nearly completed. It’s absolutely brilliant.”
Mrs Ayoub, who was 73 at the time, miraculously survived the blast.
She was protected when her washing machine fell on top of her, pushing her into a gaping hole in the floor and shielding her from the debris.
She was left nursing a broken ankle and heels after emergency teams dug her out from the rubble of her collapsed home on December 28.
The pensioner was then rushed to New Cross Hospital before she was later taken to Albert Road’s Eversleigh Care Centre.
The blast was heard several miles away and closed the busy Penn Road, a main route in and out of Wolverhampton. Commuters have been able to watch the new house take shape.
Mr Uppal, whose home was also severely damaged by the blast, said he was pleased the disaster did not claim any lives. The Uppal’s Sweet Centre co-owner added: “It’s been hectic and extremely hard. There are still little bits that we need to do. We are just grateful that nobody else was seriously hurt and Wendy survived. There’s always that feeling in the back of your mind that it will happen again but there’s not much else you can do about it. We have taken all the precautions we can.”
