Four critical after UK blast

Leicester City [UK], Feb 26 (ANI): At least six persons were injured, of which four are battling for life, after a suspected explosion in Leicester City of the United Kingdom (UK) on Sunday night.

All four critically injured were taken to Leicester Royal Infirmary, tweeted East Midlands Ambulance Service, after police declared a major incident following the blast that destroyed a shop in a street in the city.

Leicestershire Fire and Rescue said it received a call around 7.03 p.m. from the public who heard the blast on Hinckley Road.

Video taken at the scene shows flames billowing into the night sky.

Emergency services were rushed to help someone close to a convenience store engulfed in flames.

A hazardous area response team and ambulance crews remain at the scene in Hinckley Road, it said.

Leicestershire Police said people had been evacuated from businesses and homes in the immediate vicinity and taken to a nearby police station as a temporary measure.

A police spokesman said that "at this stage, there is no indication this is terrorist-related" incident.

A resident, who lives on the same road as the fire, said: "We are down the same street - about 500 meters from where the blast has taken place and our whole house shook.

"We checked on our children first and foremost and then we went outside," she told Sky News.

"There is just an awful lot of smoke here at the moment and the whole area is cordoned off."

Leicester Royal Infirmary tweeted: "We can confirm that four patients from the scene have been taken to Leicester Royal Infirmary via @EMASNHSTrust in a critical condition."

A spokeswoman said six fire engines had been requested and the incident was currently being treated as a search and rescue operation.(ANI)

This story has not been edited. It has been published as provided by ANI