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Gas blast girl's inquest begins Gas explosion girl 'was lifeless'
(about 4 hours later)
An inquest has opened into the death of a nine-year-old girl who was killed in a gas explosion as she walked past a house in Plymouth. A nine-year-old girl was left lifeless under a pile of rubble after a gas explosion at a house she was walking past, an inquest has heard.
Stephanie Hammacott was on her way to school when the blast caused a wall to collapse on top of her in January 2008. Stephanie Hammacott was walking to school in Plymouth, Devon, when the blast caused a wall to collapse on top of her in January 2008.
It is thought gas escaped through a cracked pipe and seeped into the property, which was badly damaged. Her mother Carol was then heard crying: "Where's my baby? Where's my baby?"
The Crown Prosecution Service decided no criminal charges would be brought after a police investigation. A neighbour told the inquest he could not pull her free from the rubble because of the weight of concrete.
Stephanie's mother Carol and the elderly couple who lived in the house escaped with only minor injuries after the explosion on 8 January. Neighbour Liam Kellond said he ran to the scene of the explosion and could see Stephanie lying face down.
A commemorative plaque has been placed at the site in Bulteel Gardens, Southway. He told the hearing at Plymouth Council House: "I found she was stuck fast and the weight of the concrete was holding her down. As I tried to move her legs I could feel the burning.
The hearing, which is expected to last for three days, is being held at Plymouth Council House. "I could see she was very pale and I knew in my mind she was lifeless."
The inquest continues.