An MP has called for a contingency fund to be created after survivors of a deadly gas explosion in Hounslow were saddled with a £73,000 bill for emergency work.
getwestlondon revealed last month how elderly residents left homeless by the disaster in October last year had been handed the huge invoice.
Two people were killed in the blast and others required hospital treatment after a tree was brought down by strong winds, rupturing a gas pipe in Bath Road, Hounslow.
Yet homeowners and their families have been asked by Hounslow Council to cover the cost of making the area safe on the day of the tragedy.
Feltham and Heston MP Seema Malhotra has been speaking to the council and the Government to see what can be done for those affected. She believes a discretionary fund should be set up to help victims of similar disasters in future.
"This is a very unusual situation where elderly people have lost everything and been through great trauma due to circumstances beyond anyone's control. I would like to see a discretionary fund that could be used in situations like this," she said.
She added that the council needed to look at how it secures homes following such tragedies, after a number of personal possessions were looted from the properties.
Two out of the five terraced houses were uninsured and Ms Malhotra said a national awareness campaign was needed to encourage people to make sure their properties were covered.
One woman, whose elderly aunt's home was badly damaged, said: "I never expected we would have to pay for the emergency work to make the area safe, and I can't believe how much they're charging.
"These people have lost their houses and the majority all of their possessions. Some were uninsured, so it's shocking they're being asked to go into debt to pay for work they never dreamed would be needed.
"I also can't imagine how the families of the couple who died must feel to be asked to pay this fee. It feels so insensitive and just so inappropriate."
Hounslow Council has previously said it is 'usual practice' to pass on the cost of such work to residents but that it was working hard to find a suitable solution.
Those affected have said they were originally told by the council the bill would be about £140,000, but that this was roughly halved following negotiations with emergency contractor Wates.
Wates declined to say how such a reduction had been possible or to give a breakdown of the costs. Nor would it say whether it was common practice for such costs to be passed on to residents.
However, a spokeswoman for the firm said: "As part of Wates' role in carrying out emergency maintenance services on behalf of the council, it was our duty to make safe any buildings that carried a potential risk to the health and safety of the public.
"This work is now complete and the matter is in the hands of the council. Our sympathies remain with those affected by the incident."
As well as coughing up their share of the £73,000, householders are also being asked by the council to pay for the cost of demolishing the buildings.
