London firefighters tackle blaze at building containing gas cylinders

Firefighters tackled a blaze at a building in central London on Saturday, the fire service said, setting up an exclusion zone around the site due to the presence of gas cylinders that risked exploding. London Fire Brigade said more than 50 firefighters and 10 engines were attending the fire at a building under refurbishment on Great Portland Street, just north of London’s busy shopping and entertainment district Soho. “There are a number of gas cylinders involved in the blaze,” London Fire Brigade said on Twitter. “A exclusion zone of 25 metres (80 feet) has been set up, as a precaution, as some cylinders can explode when exposed to heat.” There were no reported injuries in the blaze, over which the fire service said it received more than 40 emergency calls.