CHEMICAL SPILL SPARKS BIG 999 RESPONSE

A man was injured in a ‘chemical’ explosion at a fuel depot near Peterborough.

The explosion happened at the Pure Fuels depot in Old Great North Road, Stibbington at about 7.40pm on November 28, with emergency services saying the blast involved chemicals.

Following the explosion residents were advised to stay inside with windows and doors closed.

The road was closed from the A1 towards the site, up to the exit past the train station, and only fully re-opened the next day.

It was later confirmed the explosion involved methanol.

A spokesman for Cambridgeshire police said: “We were called at 7.44pm by the ambulance service reporting an industrial accident at a warehouse in Great North Road, Stibbington.

“It is believed this was a methanol explosion. Three people were inside the building at the time of the explosion, no one suffered serious injuries.”

A spokesman for the East of England Ambulance Service said: “We sent a number of units including our Hazardous Area Response Team, East Anglian Air Ambulance and an ambulance. One patient was treated at the scene, however did not required hospital treatment.”

Police, fire and rescue, The Environment Agency and The Health and Safety executive were at the scene the following day.

An investigation is still ongoing into what caused the blast.

Nearby Nene Valley Railway was unaffected by the blast - but offered emergency services assistance as they worked at the scene.

The Peterborough Telegraph has approached Pure Fuels, but they have not commented on the incident.

Emergency services at the scene of the explosion