COUNCILLORS in Walton plan to quiz bosses at Solvay Interox to establish the cause of an explosion at the chemical plant on Monday morning.

An amount of hydrogen peroxide gas exploded in a storage tank at the site on Baronet Road in Walton just after 8am.

Six fire crews, including a decontamination unit, were called to the scene, and emergency paramedics were put on stand-by.

The blast brought down one of the walls in the purpose-built unit and started a small fire.

Firefighters used jets and a turntable ladder to prevent the leak from affecting nearby vessels and pipework, which may have caused another explosion.

The incident was contained on site, but Richard Dinsdale, chairman of Walton Parish Council, is more concerned about what could have happened.

He said: "We have deep concerns. There have been serious explosions in the past, where residents have had to be evacuated.

"It's an enormously high-risk operation to have on your doorstep.

"On behalf of my parishioners, we will be writing to the company to find out what led up to such an incident."

Keith Wilberforce, safety, health and environment manager at the plant, explained that an on-site investigation was under way, and that staff were liaising with officials from the Health and Safety Executive to establish what caused the incident.

He said: "We have shut down a part of the plant as a routine procedure until we find the cause of the incident."

As the GUARDIAN went to press, a spokesman for the Health and Safety Executive said: "A full investigation into this incident is now under way. It is not yet known how long this will take."

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