A man in his forties is tonight fighting for his life in hospital after a house exploded, killing a German Shepherd dog.

Emergency crews converged on Coronation Terrace in Willington, County Durham, at about 1.30am on Monday (June 24) after a blast tore through a terraced home.

The house was reduced to rubble, with pictures from the scene showing its roof and first floor torn apart.

Police have now confirmed a man in his forties who was rushed to hospital by paramedics is fighting for his life with serious injuries.

A young German Shepherd dog has also been confirmed to have died in the blast.

A cordon remains in place and the majority of neighbours evacuated from their homes in the early hours of Monday have been allowed to return home.

Police and fire investigators are continuing to investigate the explosion, and have urged people not to speculate online about its cause.

(Image: TERRY BLACKBURN)

Residents on Coronation Terrace described waking to the sky flashing white and a noise like thunder when the property went up in a fireball.

Video captured on a nearby doorbell camera shows sparks and debris being catapulted into the air as flames tore through the home.

Pictures of the devastating aftermath show the property reduced to one storey and surrounded by rubble.

(Image: TERRY BLACKBURN)

Following the devastating blast, residents told The Northern Echo of their shock and horror when they woke to see the explosion unfold.

One local, who wished to be known as David, “saw everything” and captured shocking pictures of the flames as he headed to the scene to help.

(Image: Picture: DAVID)

He said: “It was at 1:27am - that’s the time my clocks stopped. I could hear a man shouting and crying for help, a lady was shouting out for help.

“I got dressed and went around and there were two people already stood there. I saw him stood in the rubble with the flames behind him.”

(Image: TERRY BLACKBURN)

Pauline Ford, who lives on nearby Kensington Terrace, compared the explosion to thunder.

She explained: “I heard the blast then came down and looked out the back window to hear shouting.

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“There were quite a few people out on the street too, at the time it seemed like it was quite serious.”

“It was really shocking. I thought my house was falling down. It’s just really awful, I feel for the lad who lives there.”

Anyone with information is asked to contact Durham Police on 101, quoting incident number 20 of June 24.