Meeting over pie factory future

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Staff at a pie company are meeting to discuss its future after an explosion which badly damaged the plant and killed one of their colleagues.

David Cole, 37, of Halifax, died in the blast at Andrew Jones Pies in Huddersfield on Friday.

The company said it was hoping to use a disused factory in nearby Brighouse to get production going again by the end of the week.

Staff will be told of the firm's plans at a meeting on Tuesday.

Sales manager Graham Easby told BBC Radio Leeds: "In all adversity you still have to look forward and the objective was that by the end of this week we would produce an Andrew Jones pork pie.

"So that is something for people to see, people to focus on.

"It's a tragedy but we still have to look forward."

Colleague 'stable'

Mr Easby said staff had pulled together to help get the company back on its feet after the explosion.

He said: "The staff have been coming in since Sunday to help clear up, just out of a gesture of goodwill."

He said the factory in Brighouse was being assessed to see if it was suitable for production.

"We have electricians coming in today and then we are going to have a look and see if we can get that one up and running and if not that one then we will have to look somewhere else."

Marcus Cartwright, 23, who was badly hurt in the blast, is recovering in hospital.

Mr Easby said: "There's been no really change [in his condition] since Sunday, he's still quite poorly.

"But he's stable and that's good because no deterioration is good news.

"He has held his girlfriend's hand."

The cause of the explosion appears to have been gas-related and is not being treated as suspicious.

Andrew Jones, an award-winning pie maker with a million-pound annual turnover, supplies butchers, farm shops, sandwich shops and other retailers.