Contractor forced to quit Hemel Hempstead base by apocalyptic fire in neighbouring oil depot





Sir Robert McAlpine abandoned its headquarters in Hemel Hempstead, Hertfordshire, this week after the nearby Buncefield oil depot exploded.

The explosion caused a fire that began on Sunday morning and burned for three days. It was extinguished, but a secondary blaze had broken out as Building went to press on Wednesday.

The contractor was one of 350 businesses that had to abandon their offices in the area.

A spokesperson for the contractor confirmed that emergency services had set up an exclusion zone around the company’s premises, and that the it was operating a contingency plan to enable 180 staff to work from home and other offices. However, he denied that the measures would have a significant impact on McAlpine’s operations.

The spokesperson said: “We have put measures in place for remote access, and our staff are working from other premises. The police have cordoned off the area around the site and have not been allowing access, although we are meeting them to discuss returning.”

It is understood that the McAlpine headquarters suffered minor damage in the explosion, which registered 2.4 on the Richter scale. The BRE headquarters, located in nearby Garston, was also damaged in the blast, but remains open.

Local authority Dacorum council has begun to assess the damage to buildings. A spokesperson said it was likely that other contractors would be called on once the extent of the damage became apparent.

The spokesperson said: “At the moment the emergency services are still working to extinguish the blaze, so our officers can only really make walk-by assessments.”

The Health and Safety Executive is due to investigate the cause of the blaze once the fires have been extinguished.

The blast caused the largest fire of its kind in peacetime Europe. It is understood that the blaze began on one part of the site before spreading to tanks containing kerosene for airliners and domestic use.

Forty-three people were injured in the explosion.

Fire crews are expected to remain at the scene until the end of the week, cooling the area to make sure further fires do not break out. Fire services believed they had extinguished the blaze on Tuesday evening before petrol vapour reignited, restarting the fire in a previously undamaged tank.

The local health authority claims that air tests have shown a “reassuring” lack of toxic chemicals around the depot.

However residents living in the vicinity are being urged to keep their doors and windows closed and to stay indoors as much as possible to minimise any health risks. So far no specific advice has been given to construction workers on site in the area.