Police and emergency crews raced to the scene of the blasts Fires still burn in Hemel Hempstead 11.39PM, Sun Dec 11 2005
Fires are still burning after massive explosions at an oil terminal in Hertfordshire. 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. It has been described as the biggest explosion in peacetime Europe. 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. Mar 24: Texas oil refinery blast kills 14
Sep 17, 2004: Nigerian pipeline blast kills dozens
Location of Hemel Hempstead within the UK
A shot of the fire taken near the depot

A series of large explosions have occurred close to Hemel Hempstead  Hertfordshire, UK. The source of the explosions has been confirmed as the Hertfordshire Oil Storage Terminal (HOSL), Hemel Hempstead, known locally as the Buncefield complex. Up to  150 fire fighters are reported to be at the scene with 10 fire appliances and 1 specialist foamer.

The first 'blast' was heard near Hemel Hempstead on Sunday 11 Dec at 6 am. Further smaller explosions followed at 6:24am , 6:26am, 6:30am. BBC News 24 reported an additional, fourth large explosion.  Hertfordshire Police Constabulary are currently treating the explosion as an accident.  

Reports say the explosion, which registered 2.4 on the Richter scale, was heard as far away as Oxford, and Whitehall, Central London which is 60km (38 miles) away. Eyewitness statements report that the explosion was heard from at least 160km (100 miles) away and as far away as France and The Netherlands. Pilots reported noticing the blast from the North Sea and the West Country area of the UK.  The M1 motorway which runs close by has been closed in both directions near the blast which is causing travel chaos as other roads become congested.

Malcom Stewart, a BBC News24 eyewitness who is a tanker driver for the site has reported that the site supplies several oil companies and is a joint operation between Total UK and Texaco, it is also used by BP, Shell and the British Pipeline association. The complex is not a refinery but a storage facility for refined petroleum awaiting distribution to airports and filling stations. The eyewitness reports that the depot has approximately 20 tanks which can hold about 3 million gallons (11 million litres or 70,000 barrels) each.  Another News24 eyewitness has just reported that he has seen at least 5 of these tanks on fire.

Satellite image of Hemel Hempstead fuel explosion showing black smoke from the explosion near London

The depot operates on a 24 hour basis and is split into 2 parts - aviation fuel and domestic fuel.  A number of eyewitnesses have reported on UK news that the aviation fuel side appears to be the part of the site that has been affected.

Local authorities were not immediately available for comment but there have been reports of casualties.

Some reports on live television state that, "Several other neighbours said they did see a plane go into the depot."  BBC News 24 were also discussing the idea a possible plane crash as the cause of the explosions.  Hertfordshire police have now gone on the record to say that there is no plane involved (BBC News24).

The police have issued a contact number 0800 096 0095 and asked that people do not call the emergency services in Hertfordshire directly unless it is an emergency. 
Buncefield Fire, taken from Dunsmore, Bucks - about 20miles away.

In addition to being an oil storage depot, it is a major hub on the UK oil pipeline network with pipelines to Killingholme Lindsey Oil Refinery (LOR), Humberside (10 inch), Merseyside (10 and 12 inch), Coryton on the Thames Estuary (14 inch) and Heathrow (6 and 8 inch) and Gatwick airports radiating from it.

The disaster is believed to be the worst explosion at a petrochemical plant in the UK since the Flixborough disaster of 1974.
Hertfordshire's Chief Fire Officer Roy Wilsher said: "This is possibly the largest incident of its kind in peacetime Europe." 

A firefighting press officer said that they are stock piling foam from neighboring regions for a prolonged attach which they hope will stop the spread of the fire, however, the inferno itself will have to burn out which could take between 24 hours and a few days.

Despite the authorities saying that there is no need to panic buy petrol, filling stations have had above average queues since this morning and some small garages have ran out.

Deputy Prime Minister John Prescott has visited the scene.

Smoke Viewed from St Albans