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| Man killed in welding van blast | Man killed in welding van blast |
| (30 minutes later) | |
| A man is thought to have died when a van carrying welding equipment exploded in a County Durham market town. | A man is thought to have died when a van carrying welding equipment exploded in a County Durham market town. |
| It happened in Wolsingham near Bishop Auckland at 0700 BST when the Transit van, carrying oxy-acetylene cylinders, stopped near the market square. | |
| Wreckage was strewn across the road and shop and house windows shattered, according to eye witnesses | |
| Durham Police, who are at the scene along with fire crews, described the explosion as "a major incident". | Durham Police, who are at the scene along with fire crews, described the explosion as "a major incident". |
| There was a very large explosion indeed. It woke up pretty much everyone in the town at the same time Matthew Barraclough, BBC Radio Cleveland | |
| A cordon has been set up around the wreckage of the van and nearby homes have been evacuated. | |
| The explosion, which was heard around the town, is believed to have happened after the van driver stopped at a shop. | |
| BBC Radio Cleveland's Matthew Barraclough, who is at the scene, said: "There was a very large explosion indeed. It woke up pretty much everyone in the town at the same time. | |
| "People who live in the market square and the homes surrounding that have been evacuated. One woman I spoke to said she was not going to be allowed back into her house for 24 hours. | |
| "We don't know if any buildings have been damaged structurally but that's one of the factors the emergency services are taking into consideration." | |
| No-one else is thought to have been hurt in the explosion, on the A689. | |
| Are you near the area? Did you see or hear what happened? Send us your comments by filling out the form below. | Are you near the area? Did you see or hear what happened? Send us your comments by filling out the form below. |
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