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Explosions in southern England?
Just broke on the terriblevision, no word yet as to how serious or whether or not it was the Bad Guys.
The incident at the Buncefield fuel depot near Hemel Hempstead, after 0600 GMT, was said to be the largest of its kind in peacetime Europe. The fire, which police believe was an accident, could burn for another day. About 2,000 people living near the site have been evacuated, while police have advised others to keep their windows and doors closed because of fumes. Thick clouds of smoke are spreading to the south-east and south-west of the site. One person is in Watford General Hospital in intensive care with respiratory problems. Another person is in Hemel Hempstead Hospital being kept under observation. The other 41 people were treated for minor injuries and discharged. Witnesses said another two explosions followed the first at 0626 GMT and 0627 GMT at the site near junction 8 of the M1. In total, 20 petrol tanks were involved in the fire, each said to hold three million gallons of fuel. Hertfordshire Police Chief Constable Frank Whiteley told a press conference: "There is still a possibility there could be further explosions." A police investigation into the incident has begun, including investigations by anti-terrorist police. But Chief Con Whiteley said there was "nothing to suggest anything other than an accident". A Hertfordshire fire service spokesman said: "This is possibly the largest incidence of its kind in peacetime Europe." Mr Prescott is on his way to the scene of the blast having earlier visited Hertfordshire police headquarters. Many houses have been damaged, with some reporting feeling effects from the explosion as far away as Oxfordshire - while it was heard in a number of counties and even France and the Netherlands. Eye witnesses reported buckled front doors, cracked walls and blown-out windows. The M1 has been closed both ways between junctions 6a and 12 and may remain shut on Monday. Schools in and around Hemel Hempstead are likely to be closed on Monday, said police. The M10 motorway is closed in both directions between junction 1 and junction 7 as well as some arterial roads in Hemel Hempstead. Motorists have been told not to go "anywhere near the M1 from the M25 upwards". At Heathrow airport some flights were forced to delay landing because of smoke, but Luton airport was operating as usual. The Buncefield depot is a major distribution terminal operated by Total and part-owned by Texaco, storing oil, petrol as well as kerosene which supplies airports across the region, including Heathrow and Luton. The country's fifth largest fuel distribution depot, it is also used by BP, Shell and British Pipeline. Police said there was no indication the explosion would cause fuel shortages and warned against panic-buying. A spokesman for Total said: "We are doing everything we can to support the emergency services and to bring the situation under control." A spokesman for the Department for Trade and Industry said it was too early to say what the effect would be on fuel supply but oil companies were getting oil from other parts of the south east and across the UK. "We understand that the oil industry is meeting this afternoon to determine how the supply of petroleum products can be augmented from other distribution terminals," he said. Posted by: Dan Darling 2005-12-11 |
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