One person has died and three people are missing following the collapse of a boiler house undergoing demolition at the decommissioned Didcot A power station in south Oxfordshire, UK. Site owner RWE Npower confirmed that the man who died was an external demolition contractor working in the building.
Five people were taken to hospital after a concrete and steel structure at the derelict site collapsed. At the time of writing three more workers were missing but hopes of finding them alive were fading.
A major incident was declared at the site after initial reports of an explosion at 16:00 GMT.
"I can confirm search operations are in progress and that there has been one fatality, five persons have been taken to hospital and three persons are currently missing," Oxfordshire Fire Service area manager Mat Carlile said in an official statement. A further 50 people were treated at the scene for dust inhalation.
A 100m cordon is in place around the site and specialist search and rescue teams using dogs are searching a rubble pile that measures up to around 10m in height. A Health and Safety Executive investigation has also been launched.
The coal fired 2 MWe Didcot A power station was shut down in 2013, after 43 years in service. RWE Npower expects to complete full deconstruction of the site by the end of this year.
The gas-fired Didcot B plant was opened in 1997 on the same site and continues to operate. It suffered a major fire in October 2014, with 20 fire crews sent to tackle the blaze at its peak. The cause was later confirmed as an electrical fault.
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