Oil depot blaze in Hemel Hempstead.

[kyektulu]

A series of explosions at an oil depot just north of London has created one of the biggest industrial fires ever seen in Europe and injured 43 people. Starting at about 6:00 GMT on 11 December, a thick pall of black smoke has spread from the Buncefield oil depot in Hemel Hempstead, Hertfordshire, for more than 120 kilometres across southern England.
An inversion layer permitted people to hear it from a hundred miles away, even in such countries as France and the Netherlands. Subsequent explosions occurred at 06:27 and 06:28. Witnesses observed flames hundreds of feet high from many miles away, with the smoke cloud visible from space. Damage from the blasts, including broken windows and blown-in or warped front doors, occurred more than a half mile away. Reports also indicate that cars in nearby streets caught fire. The roof of at least one house was blown off. Buildings in the vicinity were evacuated by police. The black smoke plume, which is clearly visible from satellite photographs, is drifting at high altitude to the south-east, and can be seen across South East England.
The blaze has now been going on for more than 48 hours now is hoping to be put out this afternoon. Crews were focusing their attention on the three tanks which remained alight this morning, after pulling back briefly overnight when a "structural failure" at one was thought to pose a risk to others nearby.
They will tackle the biggest remaining tank at the depot last.

My major concern is the effect of the fire on the enviroment. Just the falling smog alone will ruin countrysides and natural habitats.

[deli_conker]

I read about that the other day. You can see video of it here.

Crazy stuff. There's a couple BP and Sunoco depots on the west side of the city I live in. I can't imagine what it would do to the area if they went up...