AN elderly couple had to be evacuated after a wall collapsed into a neighbouring house, trapping three men inside.

Emergency services were called to Barbican Hill, East Looe, just before midnight on Saturday following reports of a collapsed wall.

Residents of the houses surrounding the incident were evacuated, including 82-year-old Colin Shore and his wife Mary.

'I heard an explosion and within minutes my neighbour knocked on the door and said the police were outside, we had to evacuate our house,' said Mr Shore, a former Looe mayor. 'It was like a mini blitz really.'

Eighteen occupants of nearby houses were temporarily evacuated and accommodated at Looe Police Station, with Mr Shore and his wife going to a neighbour's house.

On arrival, police found rubble falling from the building with three men inside, one having been trapped by falling masonry.

A large drystone wall behind the house had collapsed into it, causing extensive damage.

A structural engineer was called in to assess the damaged building and determine whether it was safe for other residents to return to their homes.

'It sounded like an explosion but it was the wall that crashed through the roof of the bungalow,' added Mr Shore. 'It was a bit of a shock to the system really.'

Glyn Webster, Caradon's Principal Building Surveyor, said: 'I was called out to the property at around midnight on Saturday and when I got there, they were pulling out the last man from the house.

'We could see that the retaining wall had collapsed into the bungalow causing extensive damage, so we cordoned everything off and made the area safe.

'The next step will be that a loss adjuster will be brought in to determine whether the building will be demolished and re-built or whether extensive work will be carried out.'

All three men were safely removed from the building, with one trapped man receiving minor injuries. He did not require hospital treatment.