Blast destroys a convenience store and a home in Leicester
An explosion destroyed a convenience store and a home in Leicester on Sunday, injuring at least four people, officials said.
Pictures and videos posted on Twitter showed flames leaping into the sky from the site which was reduced to rubble.
"All emergency services are currently dealing with this," the police force said in a statement. "Please avoid the area."
The local ambulance service said it took four patients to hospital and its hazardous response team was at the site.
The city's fire department said it sent six fire engines after the reports of a large explosion and a building collapse.
Pictures on social media showed a blaze and the rubble of a destroyed building which residents said housed a convenience store and a flat above it.
"We heard an absolutely massive explosion. It was pretty frightening," media quoted an unidentified resident, who lives a few streets away, as saying.
"We went to look out of the upstairs windows and saw loads of smoke, and then a few seconds later massive orange flames."
There were no immediate indications that the explosion was linked to terrorism.
Published: by Radio NewsHub