A huge blaze tore through a construction site in London’s Great Portland Street on Saturday, with 72 firefighters being sent to the scene.
London Fire Brigade said that ten fire engines attended the building site, which is close to Oxford Street, following reports of a fire at 12.45pm.
LFB said that part of the basement, ground, first and second floor of the property were “badly damaged by the fire”. The building was being refurbished at the time.
“A number of gas cylinders were involved in the blaze,” LFB said in a statement.
“As a precaution the cylinders were cooled down as some can explode when exposed to heat.”
A plume of thick, black smoke could be seen across the capital.
The Metropolitan Police Service also attended the scene.
An exclusion zone of 25 metres was put in place as a precaution, LFB said, as there were fears some of the gas cylinders might explode.
LFB shared images of the building on social media after the fire was extinguished.
The fire was under control by 1.44pm.
The cause of the blaze is under investigation.