Homeowner Mehdi Baghba-dran says he is lucky to be alive after a gas explosion blew him 7ft in the air, destroying his Edgware home.

Mr Baghbadran, 48, was standing in the hallway of his Highview Gardens home when the huge explosion blew his semi-detached house in half last Tuesday morning.

He was sent flying into the air, hitting the ceiling, as the front and back doors, walls and windows of his house were blown out. The building was so badly damaged it had to be demolished later the same day.

Speaking at a friend's home in Rossiter Fields, Barnet, where he and wife Akram, 50, are staying, Mr Baghbadran said: "I had been out walking my dog when my friend came round and as soon as we walked through the door there was a strong stench of gas.

"I opened the front windows and the windows in the conservatory at the back of the house and was just about to call British Gas when there was a huge bang.

"My dog and my friend were immediately shot out 20ft into the street and I was blown into the air, hitting the ceiling, and the whole house came down with me."

Mr Baghbadran, who is Iranian and owns Caspian Food, in Vivian Avenue, Hendon, fell into a small gap, no more than 3ft deep, in the foundation of the house.

He added: "It all happened so quickly and I had no time to think what was happening. I opened my eyes expecting to be on my way to heaven, but I was still alive.

"There were pieces of furniture, plastering, and parts of the house all round me, and I had a sharp pain in my left shoulder where a chandelier had fallen down and hit me."

Mr Baghbadran, who has lived in the UK for 18 years and only moved into his home about a year ago, was treated for his injuries at Barnet Hospital.

He sustained a broken collarbone and severe bruising on his chest and legs. He also inhaled a large volume of dust and said he is still suffering from chest pains.

The explosion rocked the quiet Edgware street and neighbour Paul Macleod, 49, a garage owner, rushed into the house to try to save Mr Baghbadran.

Mr Baghbadran said: "I was struggling to move and then I heard someone saying, Mehdi, Mehdi, where are you?'.

"It was Paul, and I honestly credit him with saving my life. What he did was unbelievably brave.

"Parts of the house were falling down around us and if one had struck him he could have been killed. He lifted me up, and with the help of my friend, carried me out of the house."

Mr Baghbadran said he would be off work for about six weeks but said he was insured and hoped to rebuild his home.