Boat 'explodes' on the River Thames: Nine people, including baby, are rushed to hospital
Nine people, including a baby, have been rushed to hospital after a boat is understood to have exploded on the banks of the River Thames.
Emergency services were seen dealing with the blaze in the small town of Lechlade, on the edge of Wiltshire, yesterday at around midday.
It is believed that the fire was started by an explosion on a residential vessel, but the exact circumstances have not yet been confirmed.
Wiltshire Police confirmed nine people had suffered injuries and were taken to hospital, while Wiltshire999s reported that a baby was airlifted to Bristol Royal Hospital for Children for urgent medical care.
Another one of the injured people was airlifted to the John Radcliffe Hospital in Oxford.
Police added that a section of the river was closed due to the fire and that enquiries into the cause are ongoing.
Two air ambulances and six ambulances were called to the scene alongside several fire engines who put out the blaze.
Pictures from the scene show smoke billowing from a house boat on the banks of the river in the middle of the day.
Members of the public are understood to have helped rescue people from the fire and water.
Police units from Gloucestershire Constabulary, Thames Valley Police, Wiltshire Police and the Ministry of Defence Police were also called to the 'explosion'.
A spokesperson for the Wiltshire Police said: 'We responded to a reported fire on a residential boat in the River Thames near Lechlade just before midday on Saturday (May 31).
'Nine people sustained injuries and were transported to hospital.
'A section of the river was closed and enquiries into the cause of the fire are ongoing.'
The conditions of the nine people injured have not been provided but it is understood that at least two people have been discharged from hospital.
The boat fire happened on the Wiltshire side on that stretch of the River Thames, near the Gloucestershire border.
MailOnline has approached Wiltshire Police, Gloucestershire Fire and Rescue Service and South Western Ambulance Service for an update.
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