Taxi driver blew himself up inside home by cutting gas pipe
Taxi driver blew himself up and demolished house after sawing through a gas pipe and lighting a cigarette after he discovered his former partner was seeing someone else, inquest hears
- James Kirkby, 48, died in an explosion at his home in Andover on December 27
- An inquest today heard his body was found on top of rubble in the rear garden
- He was found with a cigarette in his mouth and ‘tunnel vision’ written on his hand
- The property, a halfway home for vulnerable adults, was completely destroyed
- No one else was injured in the blast, which was at the time a ‘major incident’
- Hampshire coroner Grahame Short has today recorded a conclusion of suicide
A taxi driver blew himself up and demolished the home he was staying in after sawing through a gas pipe and lighting a cigarette, an inquest heard today.
James Kirkby, 48, was upset at discovering his former partner had been seeing someone else. He called her mother and said ‘take care of everybody’ before causing the explosion at the property in Andover, Hampshire on December 27 last year.
The alcoholic father-of-three had gone into the basement and sawed through a pipe leading to the boiler which caused gas to fill the property.
He then went to an upstairs room of the terraced home and lit a cigarette, causing a massive explosion which hurled him out of the window and into the rear garden.
His body was found with a cigarette still in its mouth. The home, a halfway house for vulnerable adults, was completely destroyed in the explosion.
Jamie Kirkby (pictured above) was killed in a gas explosion in Andover. An inquest heard today how he had sawed through a gas pipe prior to the explosion
The force of the explosion hurled Mr Kirkby’s body into a garden at the back of the property. His body was found with a cigarette still in its mouth, and his hand had the words ‘tunnel vision’ written on it
An aerial shot of the wreckage in Andover following the explosion at the property (pictured above). The home was completely destroyed in the blast
An inquest heard today the words ‘tunnel vision’ were also penned onto the back of his left hand, which rescuers discovered after pulling his body from the wreckage.
Summarising the event, the Mid-Hampshire coroner Grahame Short said: ‘At about 2.30am, an explosion took place at Lancelot Close, Andover.
‘I find it proved that this was the result of ignition of gas from the pipe leading to the boiler in the property. I believe that James deliberately sawed through that pipe, with a hacksaw blade or blades.
‘At the time of the explosion, the evidence points to the fact he wasn’t alongside the boiler, but in an upper part of the building and he had ignited a cigarette. I find that that was the likely cause of the ignition.’
Mr Kirkby had been thrown out of the house by the force of the blast, which killed him almost instantly. He was pulled from the debris of his house, a three-storey building for vulnerable adults.
He had been living in the house for just five weeks and it was blown apart in the early morning explosion. Mr Kirkby was certified dead at the scene.
Firefighters found bricks and Christmas decorations strewn up to 41 feet away from the ruined terraced house, which had collapsed on to its side.
Mr Kirkby had been living in the house for just five weeks and it was blown apart in the early morning explosion
A tent was set up after Mr Kirkby’s body was found and emergency teams rushed in to secure the building
A gas engineer passes a vehicle crushed by debris in Launcelot Close, Andover
Clothes were flung high into the air and were in the trees (right) following the explosion. Police and sniffer dogs (left) were also deployed to search the area
The incident left the neighbouring property so badly damaged that its interior could be seen from the street.
The blast was declared a major incident when a distressed bystander shouted that three people lived in the house and there could also be a child inside.
Along with Urban Search and Rescue teams and ten fire appliances, crews found Mr Kirkby’s body but there were no other people injured.
Three hacksaw blades were found next to where the boiler had been, and a sawn-through pipe was discovered.
The coroner added: ‘No-one else was present, fortunately, in the building and I do not believe that he would have done this if there were others present, so I think that was part of his thinking at the time.’
The inquest in Winchester, Hampshire heard that Mr Kirkby had texted Coleen Coombs, his ex-partner’s mother, in which he said: ‘Sorry, I’m no good to you right now. Speak to your daughter. She needs to get her priorities right, right now.’
Less than one hour before he was found dead, Mr Kirkby had spoken to Coleen for 45 minutes in a phone call which she described as ‘rambling’ and he pleaded: ‘Take care of everybody.’
A mattress could be seen in the middle of the street after the home explosion. Neighbours reported smelling gas
Cars were battered by a part of the window pane which flew from the house and hit them
The ruins of the house are seen in Andover, Hampshire where Mr Kirkby’s body was pulled from the debris
His relationship with his partner, Jasmin Coombs, with whom he had a young daughter, had deteriorated after he racked up a debt of £1,400.
His car, which he was using to ferry fares around for his father’s taxi company 1-2 Call Cabs in Andover had also became a financial write off, the Mid-Hampshire coroner Grahame Short heard.
Jasmin Coombs told the inquest that Mr Kirkby had been devastated to learn she was seeing a new partner in November of last year and said: ‘It did upset him, because that meant we were not getting back together.’
Mr Kirkby had been drinking eight cans of cider daily while living in Dene Court, Andover, a hostel for the homeless, the inquest heard.
His GP, Dr Benjamin Sharpe told how he had shocked himself with an electric toaster after contact with Ms Coombs, and said: ‘I was concerned at this change in his presentation and more violent methods of self harm.’
It was revealed he had an appointment booked with Hampshire mental health services on December 28, the day after he died.
Cars outside the home were covered in debris while the side of a block of flats was torn off
A huge pile of debris can be seen where the house once stood after a devastating gas explosion
A search of the rubble has begun in Andover after the explosion in the middle of the night
Numerous police cars, ambulances, fire engines and gas company vans were scrambled to the collapsed building and work began to remove the rubble, with the house brought to the ground by the enormous blast.
The coroner heard from pathologist Dr Hayley Burnley that her post mortem examination of Mr Kirkby’s body had found that ‘tunnel vision’ had been written in pen on the back of his left hand and he had been drinking for a few hours prior to his death – the amount of alcohol in his blood was over twice the drink-drive limit.
Dr Burnley said: ‘The body was located in the rear garden, a cigarette was present within his mouth. There were flash burns over the body, fracture of numerous ribs on the left side.
‘Death was the result of blast injuries secondary to a gas explosion at his home address. I would imagine that he was rendered unconscious and would have passed away due to the blood loss from the scalp and also respiratory failure due to his lungs not functioning.’
The smell of gas had lingered in the air long after the blast as families, some in tears, were slipped out of the police cordon and into the local community centre as emergency services cleared the scene.
Concluding the inquest, the coroner said: ‘While taking an overdose might be unplanned, it might be accidental, I find that this was a deliberate series of acts.
‘It required some thought and he had therefore sawn through the pipe deliberately. He must have realised a lit cigarette would cause the explosion if gas was in the property.
‘He may have already inhaled some gas. I therefore find it proved that the elements for suicide are present.’
For confidential support call the Samaritans on 116123 or visit a local Samaritans branch, see www.samaritans.org for details.
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