LEICESTER – At least four people were killed and four others injured after a huge explosion in a shop near Leicester city’s center on Sunday night.
Leicestershire Police Superintendent Shane O’Neill said, “There are four confirmed fatalities at this stage and a number of people still undergoing treatment in hospital”. “We believe there may be people who have not yet been accounted for and rescue efforts continue in order to locate any further casualties,” O’Neill said.
The Leicester police declared it a major incident on Hinckley Road and said that all emergency services are dealing with this. A massive fire also erupted following the explosion and efforts are underway to douse it.
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According to police, the cause of the incident is yet to be determined and it cannot be confirmed whether it was a terrorist attack. Carlisle Street and part of Hinckley Road have been closed, besides asking the people to avoid the area.
Leicestershire Police said: “The cause of the explosion will be the subject of a joint investigation by the police and Leicestershire Fire and Rescue Service.”
Two of the six injured have been declared critical by hospital officials, while four others are “walking wounded”.
Angel Namaala, a resident of the area, told BBC she felt tremor like an earthquake, adding, “The building had gone down and people were trying to help where they could by taking the bricks off. But the fire was getting bigger and bigger so people were told to leave the scene.”
The explosion was so powerful that that glass and debris of the building were scattered across all four lanes of the road.
