RESIDENTS were being warned today to beware of reckless petrol thieves who are putting lives at risk during the fuel crisis.

Thieves came close to sparking an explosion in a Bolton house by bursting a parked car's fuel tank in a bid to try to steal the petrol.

Now firefighters are warning drivers and homeowners to be extra vigilant and call out the experts if they smell fumes in their vehicles or home.

The warning came after a worried resident came home yesterday afternoon to find her home on Sweetloves Lane, Sharples, filled with fumes. She wrongly assumed she had a gas leak.

Gas Board officials ruled out a leak and eventually firefighters traced the flammable vapours seeping into the house to petrol pouring down the sloping drive.

They believe thieves had been trying to steal petrol from the resident's Saab by bursting the tank with a screwdriver but were disturbed and fled empty handed.

Fire crews cleaned the petrol and used specialist equipment to vent the property. But sub-officer Shaun Walton fears next time they could be clearing up after an explosion.

He said: "Luckily there was not much petrol in the car and the flammable gases did not come within the explosive range. But it could have been very dangerous and the person did exactly the right thing by calling out the experts. If anyone smells petrol in their homes they should extinguish any naked flames and avoid turning electricity appliances on or off.

He added: "Taking petrol by maliciously tampering with a petrol tank is very haphazard and dangerous and a recipe for disaster. It is the second time in two days that firefighters have been called out to clear up after thieves tried to burst petrol tanks on cars." Meanwhile, as the fuel crisis moves into its fifth day across the town, ambulance bosses began to bus staff into work. Vehicles normally be used for Greater Manchester Ambulance Service's patient transport services have been deployed to operate as taxis for health staff in Bolton struggling to get to work.

GMAS say they still have enough fuel supplies to operate a normal emergency service for the immediate future and today again reassured the public that the 999 service would be operating as usual.

They are also making their supplies available for other essential health purposes at identified fuel distribution points manned by GMAS staff.

As spokesman for GMAS said: "As one of the few holders of diesel fuel stocks within the North-west Health Community, GMAS has established a system to make the service's fuel available to other Greater Manchester Health Service emergency users, including GPs on call and community health staff providing essential service to patients."

Royal Bolton Hospital bosses assured patients they were coping with the crisis and should not run into any real problems until at least the weekend.

Essential staff are being offered accommodation and they recommending car sharing for others.

They currently have enough blood in stock to last five days; enough oxygen for nine days and are prioritising the essential users for medical gases. But they are reporting problems with patients getting to the hospital. Only one patient has cancelled an operation, but more than 30 have cancelled out-patient appointments.

A spokesman for Bolton Hospitals NHS Trust said: "The situation has been reassuringly positive and staff are willing to be flexible. We have been holding constant meetings to chart what is going on and we have developed detailed contingency plans, working hard to maintain full services as long as possible."

Today Greater Manchester Police urged motorists to avoid Manchester city centre, where a huge protest by fuel protesters brought the city to a standstill.

Bus operators have indicated they will continue to run services during rush hours at the moment, although some are withdrawing some evening services.

The majority of operators are also indicating they may reduce the frequency of day time services to save fuel until the blockades lift.

Passengers are advised to contact GMPTE's information line on 0161 228 7811.

Bolton Wanderers fans missed the first ten minutes of last night's match against Grimsby because of tailbacks on the motorway caused by the crisis.

Three coaches of Wanderers fans travelled to the north east but just 15 minutes away from the ground the coaches got stuck in traffic which had built-up following earlier protests on the motorway.

Dedicated Wanderers fan, 77-year-old Florence Brandwood, said: "We couldn't believe it. We were so near the ground. One lorry driver stuck in the queue of traffic told us he had been there for two hours."

But it was not all bad news as Bolton won 1-0.

Florence, who lives in Astley Bridge and has been attending Wanderers games for the past 63 years, said: "At least we didn't miss the one goal and it was still a good match."