Man 'threatened to blow up house' on day of explosion

A man had been "depressed" and upset by a rent increase and was threatening to blow up his house on the day he died in an explosion, an inquest has heard.

David Howard, 53, was found in the rubble of his home on John Street, Worksop, Nottinghamshire, on 12 April 2025.

A post-mortem examination found Howard died from asphyxia caused by being trapped under the rubble, but the inquest heard he was communicating with emergency services for up to 90 minutes before he died.

A toxicology report showed Howard had low levels of heroin, cocaine and alcohol in his system. The inquest heard he had been diagnosed with post-traumatic stress disorder and struggled with his mental health for several years.

Det Con Daniel Akehurst, from Nottinghamshire Police, told the inquest officers had established Howard was in a "depressed mood" and angry after finding out his rent was due to be increased by £80.

On the day of the blast, he told several friends he was going to blow the house up, Akehurst said.

He read out extracts of an interview officers had carried out with Howard's friend, Shanelle Williams, who said she had spoken to him that afternoon.

She said he had told her: "I've done it, I've pulled the pipes off the gas. It's going to go with a bang."

He ended the call after 42 seconds at about 15:30 BST, the inquest heard, and the house exploded at 19:40.

A 43-year-old was arrested on suspicion of murder after the explosion, but was later released without charge.

Nottinghamshire Police told the inquest officers had found no evidence of any third-party involvement in Howard's death.

Nottinghamshire Fire and Rescue Service carried out an investigation into the blast, which completely destroyed Howard's house and seriously damaged neighbouring properties.

Watch manager Christopher Trendowicz told the inquest they found evidence that gas had leaked from a flexible hose attaching the cooker to a gas pipe which had been "stretched to the point where it would fail".

He said a routine electrical spark from the fridge freezer was the "most probable cause" of the explosion.

Assistant coroner Nathanael Hartley said he accepted Howard had caused damage to the gas cooker hose intentionally, but that the level of intoxicants in his blood may have resulted in "mild, cognitive impairment" which impacted his rational thought.

Recording a narrative conclusion, he added: "It is possible he did not appreciate the dangerousness of the situation. With that in mind, I find [Howard] did not intend to end his own life."

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