A MAN suffered severe burns to his face and hands after a suspected gas explosion started a fire which ripped through three mobile homes in Hockley.

The 52-year-old man had been trying to light his boiler at his mobile home on Willow Pond Farm in Lower Road when the blast occurred.

He managed to get out of his home and call the emergency services at around 5pm on Friday - four crews, two from Hadleigh, one from Hawkwell the other from Rayleigh soon arrived.

*For full story see Monday's Echo.