Will take a lot of water to clear this up if gone into main tunnels :( Colin
> >> http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-london-32157618 >> <http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-london-32157618> >> >> Holborn fire is still burning under the pavement >> >> >> Local road closures are in place but Holborn Tube station is open >> A road in central London remains closed as an electrical fire continues to >> burn under the pavement. >> >> Some 5,000 people were evacuated from nearby buildings after smoke was seen >> coming out of an inspection cover on Kingsway, in Holborn, on Wednesday. >> >> London Fire Brigade (LFB) said the fire has been contained but has been >> "technically difficult" to tackle. >> >> More than 20 firefighters and officers are still at the scene and local road >> closures are in place. >> >> LFB Assistant Commissioner Peter Cowup said: "This has been a technically >> difficult incident to tackle. >> >> "The reason that the fire is still burning is because the service tunnel is >> hard to reach. >> >> "Although firefighters have been applying water through access points >> throughout the night, the complexity of the tunnel layout means that it will >> be some time until the fire is fully extinguished." >> >> He added LFB, the Met Police and utility companies were making steady >> progress to try and resolve the situation. >> >> 'Not an overnight job' >> >> Speaking to BBC London 94.9 <http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio/player/bbc_london>, >> Insp Neil Johnson, from the Met Police, said: "The fire is still live in the >> subway. The problem at the moment is there is a gas pipe underneath and we >> are all in agreement that it is ok and if we can keep it contained it will >> be fine. >> >> "All we need to do is keep people out of the area and let the fire brigade >> and utilities do their job." >> >> >> The view from the London Eye on Thursday night highlighted the area affected >> by the power cut >> >> Firefighters were called to the fire at about 12:30 BST on Wednesday >> "I imagine this road will be closed a long time after this is finished >> because of damage the heat does to the road," Mr Johnson said. >> >> "It will have to remain closed until a structural engineer examines it >> properly and either he or she says what work has to be done and that work is >> completed - this is not an overnight job." >> >> On Thursday onlookers reported struggling to breathe and "chaos" in and >> around Holborn. The cause of the fire is still unknown. >> >> UK Power Networks said the number of customers currently affected by the >> power cuts stood at about 1,000 and they had restored power to 2,000. >> >> Apologising to customers Matt Rudling, from UK Power Networks, said: "The >> gas is still burning under there and until we can gain access to that >> particular area we won't understand what's caused it and what we can do." >> >> >> Smoke was seen coming out of an inspection cover on Kingsway on Wednesday >> >> "We want to try and restore [power to] all those remaining customers by the >> end of day today." >> >> He apologised for the disruption and added that emergency generators were >> being used to supply power to the area. >> >> UK Power Networks' engineers are also trying and connect some of the damaged >> cables to unaffected ones. >> >> Kingsway is closed between Holborn and Aldwych, the Strand Underpass, >> Waterloo Bridge northbound and Southampton Row southbound between Vernon >> Place and High Holborn, which is causing delays. >> >> Holborn station is open, however nine bus routes are being diverted >> <http://www.twitlonger.com/show/n_1slhjq1>. >>
