Man jailed after gas explosion in Blackley
Kevin Carroll blew up the property after splitting up with his girlfriend.
A man has been jailed for 32 months for causing a massive'' explosion following a suicide bid over atoxic'' love split from his partner.
Kevin Carroll, 33, severed the gas pipe at his rented home in Cecil Road, Blackley, Greater Manchester, in a failed attempt to poison himself but triggered the blast when he woke up the following morning and used his lighter.
Manchester Crown Court heard he did not intend to cause the damage, but his actions were extremely dangerous'' and the consequences were extensive and grave.
A friend of the defendant needed to be placed into an induced coma from his injuries suffered outside of the property when the front door was blown off the hinges and landed on top of him. He suffered significant burns to his face, arms and body in which he described the pain at times as unbearable''.
Carroll himself suffered 15% burns to his leg and was in hospital for more than two weeks before he later pleaded guilty to damaging property and being reckless as to whether life was endangered.
Alaric Bassano, prosecuting, said that Carroll's 75-year-old next-door neighbour was upstairs when his ceiling collapsed on top of him, while another retired neighbour living opposite was thrown from his chair and suffered bruising to his knee and hips.
A couple living two doors down from Carroll described their shock and panic'' as they were thrown off their bed as the room filled with dust and smoke, while a nearby school, Blackley Academy, for pupils aged three to 11, had to close for the day.
Mr Bassano said: The school shook during the explosion, causing a great deal of alarm, confusion and panic among pupils and staff. Some of the children were crying and the headmistress noticed that two Syrian pupils were quiet, withdrawn and frightened.''
The court was also told that Carroll's landlady had suffered ruinous financial loss'' because her insurance company was refusing to pay for the #135,000 cost of rebuilding the property, which remains a pile of rubble.
Matters had taken a turn for the worse for the defendant in November last year when his 10-year relationship with partner, RIchard Playle, became strained.
Nicola Gatto, defending, said: He was at an extremely low ebb in his life. This was a relationship that was not only coming to an end but in an extremely toxic fashion. The breakdown was protracted and unhappy.''
Carroll had attempted to hang himself in November and two months later had taken an overdose.
Ms Gatto said her client had never intended to cause an explosion and was very disorientated'' when he woke up after his failed suicide attempt and had used his lighter.
She said: He feels enormous guilt and very genuine remorse to anybody who has been affected by his actions.''
Sentencing, Recorder Mukhtar Hussain QC told Carroll: What you did was extremely dangerous and could easily have ended in fatalities. This was a massive explosion with massive consequences to a large number of people.'