An elderly woman was airlifted to hospital with severe burns after a gas explosion at her home in Solihull yesterday.
She was thought to be suffering from 30 per cent burns after an explosion in the kitchen of her home in Hampton Lane shortly before 5.30pm.
Paramedics treated her at the scene and she was taken to the specialist burns unit at Selly Oak Hospital by air ambulance.
A West Midlands Fire Service spokesman said: "It seems the woman left the gas oven with view to doing some cooking or boiling the kettle.
She left it unlit and returned a few moments later to light the gas but, unfortunately, sufficient gas had gathered in the kitchen to ignite with explosive force in which she sustained quite severe burns.
"There was no fire except that caused by the ignition of the gas in the kitchen. It looks like a tragic accident."
The woman's son arrived at the house at 5.30pm to find his mother suffering from burns, and called only police and ambulance as there did not appear to be a fire.
The fire service later sent two fire engines from Solihull shortly before 6pm.
