Clayton-le-Woods explosion: police appeal for doorbell and dashcam footage as they continue to investigate claims of a neighbour dispute

Lancashire Police, investigating the fatal Clayton-le-Woods explosion, are appealing for doorbell and dashcam footage from members of the public, as they continue to explore claims of a neighbour threat.

On Friday, October 15, emergency services were called at around 1.30pm to a report of a fire where a house had collapsed on Kirkby Avenue, and the body of the occupant of the house, Carl Whalley, 57, was found deceased inside.

Yesterday evening, the post-mortem results were released, confirming that Mr Whalley died due to smoke inhalation and burns, however the investigation into the cause of the blaze continues.

Detective Chief Inspector Jill Johnston, of Lancashire Police, said: “I would once again appeal to anyone who has any information and has not yet spoken to police to come forward and I would ask for anyone with any CCTV, Ring doorbell footage or dashcam footage to get in touch.

“We continue to investigate suggestions of a neighbour dispute and looking into these forms part of our enquiries.”

On Monday (October 18), the Post revealed Mr Whalley claimed he was the target of a bomb threat four years ago, and officers confirmed they were looking into the claim as part of their current enquiries.

Although the complaint was investigated in 2017, the Post understands no action was taken at the time.

As the investigation continues, Lancashire Police say it may be a while before the cause of the explosion is known due to the need to gather and explore extra footage.

Detective Chief Inspector Jill Johnston said: “My thoughts continue to be with Mr Whalley’s loved ones at this time. We have officers who are supporting them and we are keeping them fully updated on the progress of our investigation.

“We continue to work through the evidence we have to try and establish the cause of the fire and our enquiries include looking through CCTV footage and other digital media and speaking to witnesses. For those reasons it may take some time before we are able to give a definitive cause for the fire."

The appeal for footage also comes as Lancashire Police confirm that the incident has been referred to the Independent Office of Police Conduct, because of the neighbour dispute claims.

Yesterday (October 20), the IOPC confirmed it had received a referral from Lancashire Police "due to the fact officers had contact with the occupant prior to the incident".

A spokesman for the IOPC said: "We are assessing the available information to determine what further action may be required.

"Our thoughts are with all those affected by this tragedy."

Anyone with information has been urged to contact 101, quoting log number 0756 of October 15.

Alternatively, information can be reported online at doitonline.lancashire.police.uk.

The independent charity Crimestoppers can also be contacted anonymously on 0800 555 111 or via crimestoppers-uk.org.