Authorities fear more people may have died in the Redwood Grove fire. Earlier it was announced that three people, including a firefighter, were injured. Two of them suffered smoke inhalation and were taken to Bedford Hospital South Wing, while the third suffered a leg injury and was airlifted to Addenbrooke’s Hospital. The firefighter was one of those who suffered smoke inhalation injuries and is now recovering at home. Around 60 firefighters rushed to the scene and groups described the blaze at the 20-apartment block of flats as a “major incident”. The fire was so intense that it led to the collapse of the roof of the building. It is understood that no natural gas was piped to the property. However, firefighters investigating the cause of the fire say their “working case involves natural gas” and “can’t rule out the possibility of a heating stove or anything like that.” Bedfordshire Police Chief Constable John Murphy said more deaths were likely to be discovered in the coming days as emergency services investigated the scene. “Unfortunately we are aware that at least one person died in the explosion today,” Mr Murphy said. “There is a possibility that more victims will be discovered in the coming days as we continue to search the scene and several people, as my colleague from the fire service identified, were also injured today.” A local resident said they saw a person jump from a second-floor window to escape the burning block. Images from the scene showed the three-story structure burning, and emergency services warned people to stay indoors and keep their windows and doors closed. “I saw someone jump from the second floor window” Adam Fisher, who works in a nearby building, said: “A massive explosion [was] heard – everyone went to our work parking lot to see what was going on. “Our building is next to the apartment complex – immediately (there was) an inferno visible, a huge cloud of smoke billowing, people screaming and people frantically calling for emergency services.” Another witness, who did not want to be named, said: “I walked through town and saw the flames and I also saw someone jump out of the second floor window while the flames were coming out.” Bali Mummon told Sky News: ‘You just felt helpless at the time, thinking the worst. “The hope is that people were not seriously injured – or even killed. “And I don’t know what happened, but I hope there was hardly anyone in there.” John O’Reilly, 76, was “hit [his] feet’ from the explosion. He added: “There were bricks in the road so it was obviously a very large explosion to cause this kind of damage.” The nearby John Bunyan Center was set up as an emergency aid centre, with members of the British Red Cross present to help.
