A devastating gas explosion caused severe damage to a property in Ary, Scotland and left two adults and children needing attention in hospital.
The explosion at the house on Monday could be heard for miles around and required residents to be evacuated from part of the Kincaidston area.
Emergency services were called to the scene on Gorse Park at around 7.10pm, leading to road closures and the public being advised to avoid the area.
It has been confirmed by Police Scotland that four houses had been directly affected as a result of the blast.
Users on social media confirmed the loud blast could be heard for miles with some sharing photos of the badly damaged property with debris catered into the streets.
Euan Bryson, who lives in the adjacent housing estate, tweeted a video showing a fire engine on a smoke-filled street in the aftermath of the explosion.
He said: "Was chaotic. There was personal property and rubble all over the scene.
"The video below doesn't even do the smoke justice. Could scarcely make out peoples' faces."
A friend of a woman whose house was directly opposite the blast site in Kincaidston described the scene as "something you cannot comprehend unless you see the sheer scale of the damage".
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Moira Muir, 59, said: "Her lounge window was blown in and the radiator in her upstairs bathroom was blown off the wall."
Ms Muir, who runs a holiday home rental in North Ayrshire, rushed to her friend's aid within 30 minutes of the explosion
She added: "The smell of smoke was quite overpowering, but the biggest shock was seeing the amount of rubble and how far it had travelled.
"I have never seen anything like it."
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Police Scotland confirmed two adults and two children had been taken to hospital.
The force said inquiries were continuing into the cause of the explosion and they will carry out a joint investigation with the Scottish Fire and Rescue Service (SFRS).
Ian McMeekin, SFRS Area Commander, said: "Our thoughts are with everyone who has been affected by this incident.
"This has been an extremely complex and challenging incident which significantly damaged multiple properties in the area and resulted in the evacuation of other nearby homes."
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Speaking to BBC Good Morning Scotland, local councillor Chris Cullen said that gas had caused the explosion.
He told the programme: "It is quite harrowing actually.
"Early yesterday evening there was a row of houses and now there is a hole.
"Two-and-a-half houses are missing. It is quite shocking how far the debris has fallen and the damage it has caused."
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He added: "It has been a gas explosion, the exact details of how that happened aren't released yet."
SFRS said nine fire engines, as well as specialist appliances, were sent to the scene with two remaining on-site as of 10.30am Tuesday morning.
South Ayrshire Council is currently working with emergency services to determine who can return to their house and who will not due to "ongoing building safety concerns".
A spokesman for gas distribution company SGN, who was helping emergency services, said: "Our engineers are currently assisting the emergency services to ensure the immediate vicinity is made safe in our role as the gas emergency service."
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