Eight injured in large industrial explosion

Eight people have been injured in an explosion at an industrial estate.

Witnesses described hearing a loud bang on the Hobbs Industrial Estate in Newchapel, near Lingfield, Surrey, before a large fire broke out. Last night, firefighters were still battling to control the blaze. A spokesman for the Kent, Surrey and Sussex Air Ambulance said they were called just after 11.20am.

The casualties were taken to three hospitals; two people were transported by air ambulance. A spokeswoman for South East Coast Ambulance Service said victims' injuries ranged from "less serious to far more serious". The emergency services have also urged anyone living near the site to close their windows and asked the public to stay away from the area.

An insurance assessor at the scene, who declined to be named, said the premises where the fire broke out belong to a firm called eReco EMEA, which deals with IT and electrical recycling.

One engineer, who was working nearby, said: "There was a massive, massive bang, with a little after-bang but that was it. Then a few minutes after, smoke started to appear."