Thousands evacuated over suspected fuel leak in central London | EUROtoday

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Thousands of individuals have been evacuated in central London over fears of a fuel leak.

As technicians scrambled to isolate the leak, London Fire Brigade (LFB) mentioned it had advised round 2,000 folks to go away Southwark Street, a bustling thoroughfare lined with companies, places of work and inns linking London Bridge and Blackfriars.

Urging folks to keep away from the world, the fireplace brigade mentioned simply earlier than 3pm on Wednesday afternoon that the road had been cordoned off and a number of other buildings evacuated as a precaution.

In an extra replace an hour later, LFB mentioned: “We remain at the scene of a suspected gas leak in Southwark Street, by the junction of Great Suffolk Street.

“Around 2,000 people have been evacuated from buildings as a precaution with no injuries reported.

“Traffic is very heavy and people are advised to keep avoiding the area.”

Gas technicians have been on web site and dealing to isolate the fuel leak and make the scene protected, the fireplace brigade mentioned shortly after 5pm.

While numerous these evacuated had since left the world, visitors was nonetheless closely disrupted and a cordon remained in place, with the 381 bus route reported to have been diverted.

In an announcement issued shortly earlier than 9:30pm, a spokesperson for fuel distribution agency SGN mentioned: “Following the incident in Southwark Street earlier today, the road has reopened while a reduced cordon remains in place so that we can continue our work at this location.

“The majority of properties are now able to be reoccupied, including all residential addresses, restaurants and hotels. Just three offices and a museum remain evacuated.

“We’re very sorry for the inconvenience caused this afternoon to people who work and live in the area.”

There are a lot of inns located on the affected junction, which can also be populated with multi-storey workplace blocks and an Amazon Fresh grocery store. Lying simply south of the Thames, Southwark Street can also be near notable landmarks similar to Borough Market, the Shard, the Tate Modern and Globe Theatre.