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Explosions reported near Preston motorway junction

Posted on - 14th September, 2016 - 4:22pm | Author - | Posted in - Lostock Hall, Preston News
Smoke can be seen near Lostock Hall Pic: Aimee Horwich

Smoke can be seen near Lostock Hall Pic: Aimee Horwich

Reports of two loud explosions near Preston have been made on Wednesday (14 September) afternoon.

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A number of Prestonians have reported seeing smoke coming from near the Walton Summit business park.

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And the explosions were heard in Preston city centre too and in Lostock Hall too at around 4pm.

Aimee Horwich, who works at offices in Sceptre Point at Walton Summit, said: “We can see smoke drifting from our office.

“We don’t know what the explosions were. There was one and then another a short time later.”

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Lancashire Fire and Rescue Service said the source of the explosions was a crane lorry catching fire. It has five crews at the scene.

Deputy chief fire officer Justin Johnston said the explosions were the tyres of the vehicle. He tweeted a picture of the truck on fire.

The lorry fire near Preston Pic: Lancashire Fire and Rescue Service

The lorry fire near Preston Pic: Lancashire Fire and Rescue Service

The driver of the lorry is understood to have escaped the vehicle and attempted to extinguish the fire himself.

Highways England tweeted it had closed the slip road at Junction 2 of the M65 and Junction 9 of the M61.

The severity of the fire means the road is likely to be shut for a number of hours Pic: Peter Charles

The severity of the fire means the road is likely to be shut for a number of hours Pic: Peter Charles

Lancashire Police said they expected the slip road to be closed for a number of hours while the flames were brought under control and the vehicle moved.

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