A WORKER was critically ill today after being caught in a gas explosion as he worked in a block of flats.

Albert Heys, 54, who is from the Blackburn area, was working on the top floor of the derelict Livesey Court, Mill Hill, Blackburn (pictured), when the propane stripping machine is believed to have blown up.

Despite suffering 50 per cent burns, the council sub-contractor managed to walk down 15 flights of stairs to wait for an ambulance.

Mr Heys, who works for Bolton-based firm Malrod's, was taken to Blackburn Infirmary with what police described as extensive burns to the upper part of his body and was later transferred to the burns unit at Preston Royal Hospital where his condition was described as critical but stable .

He had been helping carry out pre-demolition work looking for asbestos on one of three blocks of flats for three weeks and has worked for Malrod's for 14 years.

He was supervising between 10 and 12 other workers at the time of the accident, yesterday afternoon.

Another man who was working with Mr Heys in the same room, who has not been named, was also taken to Blackburn Royal Infirmary with slight injuries after hurting his arm.

John Thompson, director of the main Newcastle-based contracting firm, Thompsons, said he believed the incident was caused by a gas leak from the propane wallpaper stripper which exploded when Mr Heys went to light it. Mr Thompson said a preliminary investigation had been carried out on the site and the Health and Safety Executive would continue investigations today.

He said: "That part of the site was closed down immediately and will not work again until a thorough investigation has been carried out."

Mr Thompson added that there were four fire extinguishers on the floor where Mr Heys had been working but none had been used and Mr Heys had managed to walk down from the 15th floor to the ambulance.

A spokesperson for the Health and Safety Executive said today: "From what we understand so far the contractors were scraping paint off the ceiling using steam equipment powered by propane gas and there appears to have been an explosion."