(Updated) BREAKING NEWS: Massive Series of Explosions rock Southern England

Sky News UK ^ | December 11, 2005

[Big Bad Bob]

Reports of up to Four Explosions at a fuel depot Near Hemel Hempstead, North West of London, according to Sky

__________________

Update:

Explosion Near London


The first picture, taken by a Sky News viewer

Map of the area

Updated: 06:41, Sunday December 11, 2005

There has been a large explosion followed by two smaller blasts in the St Albans area, around 25 miles north of London.

Sky Correspondent Sky Meade has said he can see flames about 200ft in the sky and there appears to be burning fuel.

Speaking by telephone from his home, Meade described "burning tongues" of flames in the sky.

The first blast happened at 6.03am - the other explosions followed about 20 minutes later.

Meade, a seasoned war reporter said he can see what looks like "burning aviation fuel".

"This fire is extremely intense. It is a bright orange glow on the horizon," he said.

Witnesses have told Sky News they heard the blast near Junction 8 of the M1. It is thought to be centred around Bunsfield fuel depot, near Hemel Hempstead.

The blast was felt at Sky Centre - more than 20 miles away in west London.

It was so powerful it blew out the windows at a hotel in Hemel Hempstead. There are reports of injuries there.

And one witness has told how the explosion shook his mother's house and lifted the roof.

Witnesses have told Sky News that emergency services are converging on the area.

Sky News producer Anwar Tambe heard the blast from his home in Luton and is currently stuck in traffic on the M1.

He said blasts are "going off regularly" and debris has blown onto the motorway.

More follows...

[I_Love_My_Husband]

A couple of hours ago, my husband who is British, was chatting to a friend of his on IRC, and his friend, who lives near London said, oh my, my windows and doors just shook and there seems to have been an explosion.

I could not find anything online. Called a friend with CNN/Fox - nothing.

It's all just coming in now. I mean I even tried to get the BBC online then and NOTHING then.

[scott7278]

It's very disappointing.

[cynwoody]

It was on the 16th.

If the current incident turns out to be TROP, it will be pretty much the first time they've gone after infrastructure, other than in Iraq. There was that ineffectual attempt to blow up a tanker in the Gulf a few years ago. But their attacks are usually aimed at killing as many random civilians as possible.

[Pimpmygop]

LBC News had Lesley Winters on and he said that they heard a roar overhead like a plane or "something" before the actual explotion. Kinda phreaky...

[msnimje]

A man on BBC just said he heard a small explosion and then a larger one.

[carl in alaska]

From AP this morning:

LONDON (AP) - A series of explosions at an oil depot shook an area north of London early Sunday, shattering windows of nearby houses and sending a billowing cloud of smoke and flames high into the sky. Police said the blasts appeared to be an accident.

The explosions were located at Buncefield Oil Terminal, near the town of Hemel Hempstead in the country of Hertfordshire.

Some local residents had reported hearing an aircraft flying low overhead shortly before the first explosion at around 6 a.m. (1 a.m. EDT). But Hertfordshire police said there was "nothing to suggest a plane was involved."

Nearby Luton Airport, about 30 miles north of central London, remained open and flights were operating normally.

Hertfordshire Fire Brigade said it had scrambled at least 12 crews to the depot and called the explosions a major incident.

The British Broadcasting Corp. reported an unconfirmed number of casualties.

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[FreedomCalls]

Here's a satellite image of the Buncefield fuel terminal in Hemel Hampstead. The large road on the right is the M1, the one at the bottom is the A414, and going north from the roundabout and beside the terminal is Green Lane.

Thanks, ImageShack for the image hosting!

[BurbankKarl]

country of Hertfordshire???

surely they mean county?

[Gucho]

50 miles away?


Thats what they say with 200 ft. flames.

[wardaddy]

Forty miles for a blast to be audible is amazing.

I've seen and heard Dragonfly's in Guatemala (El Quiche 1982??) dropping ordnance on indig guerrillas from at least that far away between mountain valleys...and A-37s are not exactly rolling thunder like a B-52 ...not meaning to quibble...maybe it's the terrain

[Dr. Eckleburg]

I am curious how this is an accident and there are many other tanks there exposed to this intense heat and massive fire that have not blown up yet?

That's a good question.

Early reports of a plane going down continue to be reported and discounted on CNN Int.

This will never be labeled terrorism because if one islamofascist suicide pilot was successful in taking out this oil depot, others would be encouraged to follow.

[carl in alaska]

I dunno. Do they have counties in England? Maybe the writer meant that this depot is out in the country.

[Canard]

Yes Hertfordshire is definately a 'county' and not a 'country'.

[carl in alaska]

It's way too early for police to say that this appears to be an accident. How could they possibly reach that conclusion already when they're in the middle of fighting the fire?

[msnimje]

CNN back up with daylight photos of the flames.

[BurbankKarl]

I think its a first strike.....

[msnimje]

CNN just said 20 tanks involved in the fire.

[Hillarys Gate Cult]

Thanks for that. It doesn't look as well designed against fire as I thought. I thought tank separation would be further than it is, I mean smaller groups of tanks.

Live feeds don't tell us much new.

CNN US is back.

[I_Love_My_Husband]

I do too.

This is terrible.

[BurbankKarl]

there are 20 tanks at that facility according to the web....60 million gallons.