Twenty firefighters went to hospital as three fire engines and two fire officer cars were destroyed in blaze at Essex industrial unit

An explosion triggered a large fire at an industrial unit in Essex, destroying three fire engines and two fire officers' vehicles and sending twenty firefighters to hospital. The scale of the damage to emergency vehicles and the number of crew members affected point to a particularly severe and dangerous incident for those tackling the blaze.

Fire crews were called to the industrial premises after an explosion set off the fire, which went on to consume the parked appliances and officers' cars at the scene. Twenty firefighters required hospital treatment as a result of the incident, though further details on the cause of the explosion, the extent of injuries and the site's operations were not confirmed in the available report.