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Hemel Hempstead Blaze Continues To Rage

As the fuel blaze in Hemel Hempstead continues to rage, fire-fighters are given the go-ahead to start trying to douse the flames.

Dramatic footage of the devastation has been broadcast to the nation showing flames and smoke from one of the biggest fires in Europe since the war.

Fire-fighters were supposed to start calming the blaze last night but postponed it because of worries about the environmental impact.

Two people were seriously injured among 43 reported casualties following a series of blasts which rocked the Buncefield depot near Hemel Hempstead. There were no fatalities.

The force of the blasts could be heard up to 40 miles away as flames shot more than 200 feet into the sky.

Despite residents reporting they heard the sound of a plane overhead before the explosions, Hertfordshire Police Chief Constable Frank Whiteley told a news conference they are treating the incident as an accident.

The first blast happened just after 6am on Sunday at the fuel terminal in Leverstock Green, Herts, close to junction 8 of the M1. The motorway was closed for around twelve hours.

The depot, which holds huge stocks of various fuels, also supplies aviation fuel for Heathrow and Luton airports.

Chief Constable Whiteley said: "We cannot be 100 per cent sure of the cause at this stage because we are still interviewing witnesses. But there is nothing to suggest anything other than an accident.

"Those injured appear to be the people working on the site and working nearby. They suffered injuries from broken glass and that kind of thing."

It is thought that the fire could burn for days but there are unlikely to be further explosions.

Police from neighbouring forces in London, Essex and Bedfordshire were drafted in to help with the situation.

Officers have been in contact with anti-terrorist officers who were carrying out investigations as part of the inquiry.

Government officials and police made necessary security checks at other fuel terminals.

Chief Constable Whiteley said police had no reason to suspect any terrorist connection to the explosion, nor were wider inquiries undertaken by the anti-terrorist branch.