The remains of the building in Accrington Road which collapsed, trapping Ian Stanley.

Demolition worker Ian Stanley narrowly escaped with his life after being buried alive beneath rubble when a building in Accrington Road crashed to the ground. Workers frantically scrabbled in the debris in an effort to free the 17-year-old, whose head and shoulders were barely visible among the tons of masonry. After being freed, Ian was taken to Burnley General Hospital, where he was being treated for leg and head injuries. He had been helping to demolish buildings near the Jubilee Garage when the collapse occurred. Two other workers were injured in the accident. Stephen Darcy, 19, of Ramsbottom, and John McFadden, 18, of Edenfield, were treated for superficial injuries.

Mr Albert Gill, who had been working nearby on a Tolson Construction site, described what happened. "I was driving past at the time and saw it come down. One lad was flung into the middle of the road but a huge cloud of dust went up and it was difficult to see. Then we heard someone crying out: "Help me. Help me," and when we reached the rubble we saw a lad trapped up to his chest. He seemed to be bleeding heavily from his head."

Mr Gill said that he had no idea why the building collapsed. "It is not our site but the building did look very unstable and there is always a risk on any demolition job." One of the workers at the site said that he thought vibrations from traffic could have started the building's collapse. The work was being carried out by S. Darcy of Irwell Vale, who have been sub-contracted by Burnley Borough Council.