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[size=18]Massive blaze rages at fuel depot[/size]

A fire is continuing to blaze at a fuel depot in Hertfordshire after a series of large explosions sent black smoke drifting across south-east England.

Deputy Prime Minister John Prescott has visited the scene of the blasts which injured 43 people, two seriously.

A fire chief described the incident at the Buncefield fuel depot near Hemel Hempstead, after 0600 GMT, as possibly the largest in peacetime Europe.

The fire, which police believe was an accident, could burn for another day.

About 2,000 people living near the site have been evacuated, while police have advised others to keep their windows and doors closed because of fumes.

Thick clouds of smoke are spreading to the south-east and south-west of the site.

One person is in Watford General Hospital in intensive care with respiratory problems. Another person is in Hemel Hempstead Hospital being kept under observation.

The other 41 people were treated for minor injuries and discharged.

Witnesses said another two explosions followed the first at 0626 GMT and 0627 GMT at the site near junction 8 of the M1.

[b]Further explosions[/b]

In total, 20 petrol tanks were involved, each said to hold three million gallons of fuel.

A police investigation into the incident has begun, including investigations by anti-terrorist police.

But Chief Con Whiteley said there was "nothing to suggest anything other than an accident".

On his visit to the site Mr Prescott praised the response and offered government help but was told the emergency services were able to cope.

Hertfordshire's Chief Fire Officer Roy Wilsher said: "This is possibly the largest incident of its kind in peacetime Europe."

Samples of the smoke are being taken to determine the long term effects of exposure, if any, according to Dr Jane Halpin, director of Hertfordshire Public Health.

She said: "However, what I would restate is that those people who are most at risk are those people who have inhaled the smoke."

Tanker driver Paul Turner said he ran for his life after the explosion lifted him off his feet.

"I just saw this great big ball of fire come up from behind the building. It was about 50 metres wide," he told the BBC.

"Then there was the loudest explosion I have ever heard in my life. I got up, turned around and ran to my car and sped out of there as fast as I could."

Many houses have been damaged, with some reporting feeling effects from the explosion as far away as Oxfordshire - while it was heard in a number of counties and even France and the Netherlands.

[b]School closures[/b]

Eye witnesses reported buckled front doors, cracked walls and blown-out windows.

Of the 2,000 people evacuated 290 people have gone to a leisure centre while 50 others have been offered bed and breakfast accommodation.

The M1 is closed both ways between junctions 6a and 12 and may remain shut on Monday.

Schools in and around Hemel Hempstead are likely to be closed on Monday, said police.

The M10 motorway is closed in both directions between junction 1 and junction 7 as well as some arterial roads in Hemel Hempstead.

Motorists have been told not to go "anywhere near the M1 from the M25 upwards".

At Heathrow airport some flights were forced to delay landing because of smoke, but Luton airport was operating as usual.

The Buncefield depot is a major distribution terminal operated by Total and part-owned by Texaco, storing oil, petrol as well as kerosene which supplies airports across the region, including Heathrow and Luton.

The country's fifth largest fuel distribution depot, it is also used by BP, Shell and British Pipeline.

Police said there was no indication the explosion would cause fuel shortages and warned against panic-buying.

A spokesman for Total said: "We are doing everything we can to support the emergency services and to bring the situation under control."

A spokesman for the Department for Trade and Industry said it was too early to say what the effect would be on fuel supply but oil companies were getting oil from other parts of the south east and across the UK.

A spokesman for the Health and Safety Executive said it would be investigating the incident.

Concerned relatives can call a police casualty bureau on 0800 096 0095, or from abroad on 0207 1580125.

[url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/4517962.stm]BBC News[/url]