Edinburgh couple forced to abandon golden wedding trip to Australia after gas explosion

The couple, both 76, planned to fund the trip through equity release - taking a lump sum from the value of their house.  But they have had to abandon their visit Down Under because the house was damaged by the gas explosion in Edinburgh's Baberton Mains Avenue in December last year and they are still waiting to hear whether it will have to be demolished.

The scene in Baberton Mains Avenue, Edinburgh, after the gas explosion. Picture: Lesley Martin/PA Wire

The explosion, on the night of December 1, killed one man, John Smith, 84, and a man and a woman were taken to hospital.  Neighbours were evacuated and many homes and parked cars were damaged, with tiles missing from roofs and windows smashed.

Many of the residents who lived closest to the house where the blast occurred are still out of their homes and living in temporary accommodation.

Mrs Porteous said: "It has been an emotional rollercoaster - we don't know if our house is going to be knocked down or what's going to happen to it.  It's been nearly a year now.  We're all frustrated with it, all the neighbours.

"We were hoping to go to Australia for our golden wedding - my brother in law stays there - but we can't go now because all the money we needed to go is in the house."

Sam and Mary Porteous had hoped to travel to Australia. | supplied

The couple lived in the house in Baberton Mains Avenue for 47 years. "We got married in and stayed in Musselburgh for three years, but we wanted a house with a garden, so that's why we moved up to Baberton.”

Their house is just a few doors away from the one that was at the centre of the blast. "We were down looking at the houses the other day - the one that was blown up and the one next to it are really in  bad condition,” said Mrs Porteous.

"And the neighbours at the bottom end of the avenue on our side still have rubble in their driveway and they can't get their car out. It's terrible.

"Some of the houses are in worse condition than others. They've still got cordon round the houses and none of us are allowed back in.

"Our patio doors were blown in, pictures came off the wall and we've got a crack in our bathroom ceiling. We've had several surveys done but they've not done a full intrusive survey because they're worried about asbestos, so it's only been observations.

"Across the road a lot of them had damaged property as well, and damaged cars, but they're all back in their houses now."

She said there was no estimate of when they and their neighbours might be able to return to their homes or what the plans for the houses are.

"We blame the council because every time the insurer wanted to do something the council knocked us back.  We've all got different insurers so that makes things difficult as well."

And Mrs Porteous is philosophical about the cancelled trip to Australia. "Never mind, it wasn't meant to be," she said.  Instead they will celebrate their 50 years of marriage by going out with friends.

Edinburgh council has been contacted for comment.