Dev Banerjee with dog Sandy, after the family were forced to flee family home in gas leak

by Hayley Robinson

hrobinson@thekmgroup.co.uk

A family of six narrowly escaped a major gas explosion after their two hungry dogs accidentally switched on the cooker.

Staffordshire bull terriers, Lucky and Sandie were in the kitchen while their owner Dev Banerjee and his five children were asleep upstairs.

It’s believed one or both of the pets may have turned the gas on after they jumped up on the work surface to lap up some biscuit crumbs.

Mr Banerjee, who was unwell with a cold, was asleep in the four bedroom semi-detached house, in Elm Grove, Murston, when he was woken up by a pain in his eye at around 11.30pm.

"had one of the kids woken up and gone to the toilet and switched on a light that could have been it" – dev banerjee

It was only when he took a deep breath to clear his nose that he noticed a strong smell of gas.

Remembering information from a safety course he attended nearly 10 years ago, he got out of bed without switching the lights on and went and woke his children - Junior, 14, Bradley, 13, Stephanie, 12, Thomas, 10 and Ben, five.

The 38-year-old single dad said: “They were sound asleep when I went in. I told them not to switch the lights on and got them outside.

I then went back in and opened all the windows and doors turned the gas off and called the fire brigade.

“The gas must have been on for about 45 minutes because I’d been in bed for about an hour.

“The whole house stank of it. Had one of the kids woken up and gone to the toilet and switched on a light that could have been it. It would have probably taken the house next door too. The people who live there have four kids.”

To prevent a similar incident to the one on March 13, Mr Banerjee now removes the knobs from the front panel of the cooker when the dogs are in the kitchen overnight.

He said: “Nothing like this has ever happened before.

"I would urge other people who leave their animals in the kitchen to make sure there is no food left on the counter so they’re not tempted to jump up.”