Shock details emerge after trainee nurse Mhey Yumol Jasmin was killed in Whalan townhouse explosion

Young nurse, 30, killed in explosion at Sydney townhouse Tenants complained of gas leaks in months before the blast READ MORE: Leading psychiatrist and father-of-two suddenly dies aged 48

Residents of a townhouse destroyed in an explosion complained of two gas leaks just months before a trainee nurse was killed in the blast.

The explosion erupted on the second level of a housing commission property on Waikanda Crescent at Whalan, in Sydney's west, about 1pm on Saturday.

The body of Mhey Yumol Jasmin, 30, was recovered in the kitchen about 2.20pm on Monday, after machinery was called in to lift heavy debris.

It has been revealed that tenants complained to the Department of Housing about the smell of gas twice in the last 12 months, most recently in April.

The department claims that on both occasions contractors were sent out to the home immediately and fixed broken gas meters.

The body of nurse Mhey Yumol Jasmin, 30, was recovered in the kitchen at about 2.20pm on Monday, after machinery was called in to lift heavy debris

The explosion erupted on the second level of a housing commission property on Waikanda Crescent in Whalan, in Sydney's west, about 1pm on Saturday

In November, a resident reported smelling gas with the provider attending the property and fixing a broken gas meter.

Five months later, a tenant once again reported smelling gas and a maintenance company responded to an 'urgent work order'.

Contractors discovered the gas meter union had split and the part was replaced.

NSW Housing Minister Rose Jackson said the previous gas leaks were being investigated urgently with the department to check maintenance logs.

'I am deeply concerned to hear of accounts from residents who reportedly raised the issue of the smell of gas within the last 12 months,' she said.

Homes NSW is currently compiling a list of the work requests made for the social housing building over the last five years.

Rescue efforts were hampered after there was a leak at the site after the explosion with investigators to probe whether a gas leak played a role in the blast.

Tenants at the home complained about the smell of gas twice to the Department of Housing in the last 12 months, most recently in April (pictured, first responders at the scene)

The massive explosion was heard streets away and shattered the glass of neighbouring buildings. Five other people were rushed to hospital.

Another 12 people from surrounding houses were evacuated, with houses and apartment buildings damaged.

Read More

Pictured: Young woman trapped under the rubble of townhouse after freak explosion is identified - as the heartbreaking reason she was at the Whalan property is revealed

Police Superintendent Trent King said the majority of tenants involved in the explosion had been under state care.

Ms Mhey had been at the property to visit her mother, Mercy, who had ducked out momentarily, and returned to find her building completely destroyed.

The nurse was discovered in the kitchen after cranes were used to remove concrete slabs from the first-floor.

Rescuers were then lifted into the home in a metal cage and used drills and cameras to look for voids and air pockets in the rubble.

Ms Mhey's body was discovered underneath the rubble by search teams.

Detective Superintendent Darren Newman said her mother was 'devastated'.

'Obviously we had to deliver a death message,' he said, adding the scene had been 'confronting' and 'difficult' for first responders.

Homes NSW is currently compiling a list of the work requests made for the social housing building (pictured) over the last five years

Ms Mhey's mother kept a close eye on search efforts from across the street before breaking down when she returned to the house.

'She (the mother) was on her hands and knees screaming for her daughter,' a neighbour said.

'She wouldn't leave, she sat here in the rain and cold all night saying she wasn't going until her daughter was out'.

Emergency services braved the heavy rain and cold and worked overnight on Saturday, in a bid to find the woman trapped underneath the debris.

The house had 'major damage' with a neighbouring home also impacted.

Whalan resident Kathleen Morris said the sound of the explosion was massive.

'I heard a big bang and the whole house shook, everybody came out of their house, wondering what had happened,' she said.