A massive explosion at a fertiliser store in Essex sent a mushroom cloud into the sky and shook homes up to 15 miles away, leaving 20 firefighters hospitalised and three fire engines destroyed. The blast ripped through an industrial unit at Highlands Farm, off Southend Road between East Hanningfield and Rettendon, shortly after 5pm on Friday, prompting Essex County Fire and Rescue Service to declare a major incident.
More than 100 firefighters were deployed to tackle the blaze, which Chief Fire Officer Rick Hylton described as a “large and rapidly developing fire” involving several units and surrounding farmland. At 5.46pm, an explosion involving fertiliser within one of the industrial units intensified the inferno, destroying three fire engines and two officer cars that were being used to respond. “This underlines the scale and intensity of the conditions our crews faced,” Hylton told a press conference on Saturday.
“Twenty firefighters hospitalised and three fire engines destroyed in Essex fertiliser explosion.”
Of the 20 firefighters taken to hospital, four suffered minor injuries, while the remainder underwent precautionary assessments, including checks for hearing loss. Hylton confirmed that all had since been discharged. The fire, which was first reported at 4.50pm on Friday, was declared under control by Saturday afternoon, but crews remained at the scene dealing with hotspots and supporting the recovery phase.
Residents described the force of the explosion. Matthew Fergusson, from Wickford, told the BBC: “We heard a massive explosion. It shook our house and we're a good mile away.” BBC cameraman Stephen Huntley said the blast sounded like a bomb going off in his back garden, and emergency vehicles passed him “non-stop” as he drove towards the site.
The cause of the fertiliser explosion is under investigation. Firefighters are expected to remain on site into the weekend as they work to fully extinguish remaining flames.