A self-employed joiner was sentenced to 300 hours of community service last week, after a gas cooker he illegally installed exploded, severely injuring two people.

A self-employed joiner was sentenced to 300 hours of community service last week, after a gas cooker he illegally installed exploded, severely injuring two people.


Alex Irvine, 44, from Paisley, was hired by John and Emily Reid to install a new free-standing gas cooker at their property in March 2009.


Irvine took on the work despite not being Gas Safe registered, and the resulting explosion caused more than £580,000 worth of damage to four properties. 


Paisley Sheriff Court heard that Irvine told Reid he was not qualified to change the gas connection, but that he could still do it. Reid agreed that Irvine would carry out the work for a £60 fee. 


When Reid investigated a noise at the back of the cooker one evening in April, he told the court he believed he may have caught the ignition switch with his thumb and there was then an explosion he described as "an almighty bang, a flash of yellow light and a roar". 


Both he and his wife suffered severe burns to their face, hands, arms and neck.


An investigation by the Health & Safety Executive (HSE) found that the hose connecting the cooker to the gas supply had split as a result of being trapped, allowing unburnt gas to enter the property. 


Irvine pleaded guilty to three offences, breaching Gas Safety (Installation and Use) Regulations 1998.


HSE inspector Russell Berry said: "In carrying out this work while not registered and competent to do so, Mr Irvine put those living in this property and those nearby at risk. 


"Thankfully Mr and Mrs Reid escaped with their lives, but were badly injured and four properties seriously damaged as a result of the explosion which was a direct result of the unsafe condition that the gas cooker was left in. 


"Any business or sole trader who carries out work on any domestic or commercial gas appliances without being on the Gas Safe Register is breaking the law and potentially putting lives at risk.”