Four people have died after a suspected explosion and subsequent fire destroyed a shop in Leicester, police said.
Leicestershire police said another four people were still in hospital following the incident in the west of the city on Sunday night, one with serious injuries, and there may yet be more people unaccounted for.
On Monday morning, a Leicestershire fire and rescue service spokesman said emergency services were searching for gaps within the collapsed building in which people could have survived.
Matt Cane told BBC Radio 4’s Today programme firefighters would use search and rescue dogs to look for any survivors throughout Monday.
Supt Shane O’Neill, of Leicestershire police, said: “There are four confirmed fatalities at this stage and a number of people still undergoing treatment in hospital. The building consisted of a shop premises on the ground level and a two-storey flat above it. We believe there may be people who have not yet been accounted for and rescue efforts continue in order to locate any further casualties.
“Once the site is deemed to be safe, a joint investigation with Leicestershire fire and rescue service will begin looking into the circumstances surrounding the incident, which at this stage is not being linked to terrorism.”
Fire crews, paramedics and police responded to reports of an explosion at the property on Hinckley Road at about 7pm. Video taken at the scene showed flames billowing into the night sky as the fire engulfed what is believed to be a convenience store.
One clip appeared to show emergency services rushing to help someone close to the flames.The building appears to have stood next to a shop called TJ’s Takeaway.
A hazardous area response team and ambulance crews remained at the scene in Hinckley Road in the west of the city, it added.Kat Pattison, who lives nearby, said: “There was a huge bang and the whole house shook. If there had been no bang, I would have thought it was an earthquake. I couldn’t believe it.
“It looks like the fire is burning under control but there’s still a lot of smoke. The shop would have still been open so it’s awful. I will be really surprised if anyone has come out of it alive and people could have also been hurt at the bus stop. We checked on our children first and foremost and then we went outside.”
She added that the shop on fire was usually open until about 9pm on a Sunday.
Leicestershire fire and rescue service said at about 7.03pm it received calls from the public who said they had heard a blast on Hinckley Road. A spokeswoman said six fire engines had been requested and that the incident was being treated as a search and rescue operation.
She added that the affected property was a two-storey building with a loft conversion that had suffered a “pancake collapse”.
Leicestershire police tweeted: “There has been a major incident on Hinckley Road, Leicester. All emergency services are currently dealing with this. Carlisle Street and part of Hinckley Road have been closed. Please avoid the area.”
Tahir Khan, a witness, said: “I was driving past when it happened. Loads of people were gathered and there was gas and flames coming out of the building. I looked on the road and half the building was on the road. Literally the whole of the side of the building had been blown out. I couldn’t believe it, it was like a Hollywood movie.”
John Alexander, a BBC journalist, said: “I live about 80 yards away from where it happened. I felt a tremor, what felt like an earthquake shock, and I heard a very low boom that sounded like a very, very fast release of pressure.
“I thought my house was going to fall down on top of me and all my neighbours have said the same thing. I saw one guy get pulled out and he’ll be very lucky if he wasn’t killed.”
Officials on Monday were still trying to determine the nature of a blast that collapsed a building in the English city of Leicester. Police said it does not appear to be related to terrorism.
Police say four people have died in the explosion while another four people are hospitalised and more people may be missing.
Superintendent Shane O'Neill of Leicestershire Police says the building where the incident happened consisted of a shop and a two-story apartment above it.
The building collapsed after the explosion and was engulfed in flames. Police declared a major incident and evacuated neighbours as a precaution. Meanwhile, a search and rescue operation is continuing.
