Man summoned to court in relation to Chester explosion

The Crown Prosecution Service has given Cheshire police and the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) authority to charge a man in relation to an explosion at a restaurant in Chester.

Mark Blackburn is set to be charged with arson with recklessness as to whether life was endangered.

He is also set to be charged with breaching the following regulations from the Health and Safety Act -  

• Section 3(2) of Health and Safety at Work Etc Act 1974
• Regulation 5(3) Gas Safety (Installation and Use) Regulations 1998
• Regulation 6(1) Gas Safety (Installation and Use) Regulations 1998
• Regulation 23(1) Gas Safety (Installation and Use) Regulations 1998

The 39-year-old, of Wakefield Road, Ossett, is set to appear at Chester Magistrates Court on Friday 18 October.

The charges follows a joint investigation between Cheshire police and HSE into an explosion at a restaurant that was being fitted out at the Chester Northgate Development on Wednesday 29 March 2023.