‘Chaos’ as Radcliffe residents forced to evacuate homes due to major gas leak

There was chaos on a street in Radcliffe on Monday morning (October 16) after residents were forced to evacuate their homes due to a gas leak.

Police, fire crews and engineers from the gas company Cadent swarmed Harper Fold Road just after 11am and cordoned off a section of the road following reports of a leak at a vacant house.

Residents in 11 properties on Harper Fold Road and nearby Higher Dean Street were ordered to leave their homes and staff at Holybank Nursing Home and Cams Lane Primary School were told to keep everyone inside and shut all windows and doors while firefighters isolated the gas and electricity supply.

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Neighbours and evacuated residents watched on from behind the cordon on Higher Dean Street as a pungent smell of gas filled the air and engineers worked to find the source of the leak.

Among them was Natalie Pope who said she reported the smell of gas after noticing it outside her house on nearby Bolton Road.

The 29-year-old carer said she initially smelt a strong smell of gas when she returned home from work at around 11pm on Sunday night but did not think anything of it.

When she left her house to take the dogs for a walk just before 11am the following morning and could still smell gas she knew something was wrong and called the National Gas Emergency Service number.

“I’ve just come back and chaos has ensued.

“I saw flashing lights and was like ‘oh my god’. I had asked on the phone whether I should knock on for the neighbours to check they were alright but