05 Oct 2011
Three people are still in hospital after being seriously injured in a huge blast at an industrial estate near Surrey, police said.
Five more people were taken to hospital after the mid-morning explosion on the Hobbs Industrial Estate in Newchapel, near Lingfield, but they have since been discharged.
A blaze started in a unit believed to belong to eReco EMEA, an IT and electrical recycling business.
About 60 firefighters were called in from three counties to tackle the fire.
Nearly 75 people were evacuated after the sound of a large blast was followed by billowing acrid black smoke being pumped into the air, witnesses said.
Liquefied petroleum cylinders and gas tanks and a number of other chemicals on site hampered firefighters’ efforts to control the flames.
In total, eight people were hurt, with injuries ranging from respiratory problems to burns and head injuries.
The cause of the fire is to be established by police, the Health and Safety Executive and Surrey Fire and Rescue officers, who all remained at the scene.
It is now business as usual for other parts of the industrial estate.
Copyright Press Association 2011