Two people taken to hospital after Ilford house wrecked by explosion and fire

Two people have been taken to hospital after a gas explosion at a terraced house in east London.

Footage on social media showed the moment of the blast on a residential street in Ilford - which caused a fire that significantly damaged the roof, both of its floors and the loft conversion.

The house had been converted into flats, the London Fire Brigade said.

Some 60 firefighters were sent to tackle the blaze on Ley Street and two people were rescued from a first-floor window using a ladder. They were taken to hospital by the London Ambulance Service.

Two neighbouring properties are being assessed by a dangerous structures engineer, the London Fire Brigade said.

Emergency services took the first calls about the fire at 4.09pm and it was brought under control by 6.23pm. Crews will remain on the scene throughout the evening.

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Station commander Darren McTernan said: "Ley Street remains closed between Eastern Avenue and Vicarage Road, impacting traffic in the surrounding area, so please continue to avoid the area if you can."

A London Ambulance Service spokesman said: "We sent resources including ambulance crews, an advanced paramedic practitioner, an incident response officer and members of our hazardous area response team.

"We treated three people. We took two to hospital and discharged a third at the scene," they added.

The London Fire Brigade said the cause of the explosion was being investigated.

(c) Sky News 2024: Two people taken to hospital after Ilford house wrecked by explosion and fire