A massive explosion rocked a food waste recycling plant in Oxfordshire after being struck by lightning.
Severn Trent Green Power, a food waste processing facility, confirmed that a lightning strike hit a tank at its plant in Yarnton on Monday evening, October 2.
JUST IN: A massive explosion went off in Oxford, UK. pic.twitter.com/3XJBx4dCB7
— Ian Miles Cheong (@stillgray) October 2, 2023
In a statement, the firm said: “Severn Trent Green Power can confirm that at around 7.20pm this evening, a digester tank at its Cassington anaerobic digestion facility near Yarnton, Oxfordshire, was struck by lightning resulting in the biogas within that tank igniting.
“We are working with the emergency services to secure the site and will provide further comments in due course.”
Emergency services responded to the incident, with 40 firefighters reported at the scene. The South Central Ambulance Service confirmed that paramedics attended, but stated there were no reports of casualties
Thames Valley Police also stated that officers were dispatched. At 9.20pm, the force said in a statement: “Our officers are currently at the scene of a fire at a waste plant near Yarnton, Oxfordshire. It is believed that lightning struck gas containers at the site during bad weather this evening, causing a large fire.”
The incident occurred after heavy showers accompanied by lightning strikes, with the region under a yellow weather warning issued by the Met Office.
Jack Frowde, 34, from Oxford, who works at Oxford University, said: “I was sitting in my kitchen when the whole room lit up with a brilliant white light, then followed by a huge crack which sounded like really heavy thunder.
“I looked out of the kitchen window and it was as if the sky was pulsating orange. I ran to the back to capture the orange glow as it faded after about 20 seconds.”
Mahmet Ciftci posted on X, formerly Twitter: “Just saw something here in Kidlington that looked like an explosion in the distance. We heard a rumble like thunder and saw flames in the distance. The horizon went orange for a while.”
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