
Huge fire rips through former RAF base as explosions heard and smoke seen from miles away
A GARGANTUAN fire has ripped through a former RAF base, with explosions heard and smoke seen from miles away.
Emergency services scrambled to the scene in Bicester Motion, Oxfordshire, earlier this evening.
2
It's thought that ten fire crews have been desperately fighting the blaze at the motoring and aviation heritage site since 6:30pm.
Locals have been told to avoid the area and urged to remain indoors and close their windows "until further notice".
Thesun.co.uk is your go-to destination for the best celebrity news, real-life stories, jaw-dropping pictures and must-see video.
Hashtags

Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles


BBC News
an hour ago
- BBC News
Kent's rare snow leopard cub dies after just one month
An animal sanctuary has announced that its rare snow leopard cub, born just last month, has cub, nicknamed Little Lady, was born to mother Laila at The Big Cat Sanctuary in Smarden, Kent, on 10 May after months of dedicated work by it has been confirmed that Little Lady died late on Wednesday night, though her cause of death is not yet known."We are all devastated by this news," said Cam Whitnall, wildlife expert, conservationist and managing director of the sanctuary. Snow leopards are listed as vulnerable on the International Union for Conservation of Nature red list, with an estimated 2,700 to 3,300 mature adults remaining in the Lady was just the second cub to be born at the sanctuary. The first was her sister, Zaya, in Lady's birth followed months of work by primary trainer Simon Jackaman, who built the trust necessary for mother Laila to voluntarily participate in ground-breaking ultrasound sessions."While deeply saddened by this loss, our commitment to snow leopard conservation and the European Endangered Species Breeding Programme remains as strong as ever," said Mr Whitnall."Every life is precious and this loss, though profoundly felt, reinforces the vital importance of our work to protect these magnificent and vulnerable big cats."The sanctuary said it remains committed to helping maintain a genetically healthy captive population to provide "a critical safety net for the future of this elusive big cat"."These moments are never easy, but they reflect just how important our work is," Mr Whitnall added.


BBC News
an hour ago
- BBC News
Telford school given £1.9m for new roof after RAAC found
A school has been given £1.9m for repairs, following the discovery of potentially unstable concrete in its Aerated Autoclave Concrete (RAAC) was found at Donnington Wood Infant and Nursery is one of more than 200 schools in England with the material used between the 1950s and 1900s, which has now been deemed a safety school will stay open while the roof is replaced and children will be taught in temporary classrooms, Telford and Wrekin Council said. RAAC is a lightweight material that was used as a cheaper alternative to standard concrete and was quicker to produce and easier to it is less durable and has a lifespan of around 30 years and it is susceptible to structural failure when exposed to moisture. The council said Donnington Wood Infant and Nursery School was the only school in its area where RAAC had been said it would take the opportunity to add insulation to the roof at the same time as the replacement councillor responsible for education, Shirley Reynolds, said she expected "some low-level disruption to nearby residents as construction traffic attends the site" and asked nearby residents to "bear with us while we carry out this essential safety work". Follow BBC Shropshire on BBC Sounds, Facebook, X and Instagram.


BBC News
2 hours ago
- BBC News
School unveils war memorial for former pupils killed in wars
A new war memorial dedicated to former pupils killed in combat has been unveiled at a Devon School. The memorial at Plymouth College remembers the almost 200 former pupils who died in conflicts dating back to World War One. After 32 years in the Royal Marines, former pupil Jason Cox, who is now the college's health and safety officer, came up with the said one of the reasons he wanted to create the memorial was to honour his former classmate who was killed in Iraq in 2003. Founded in 1887, the school lost 112 pupils in the First World War and 68 in the Second World other names have been added, including former pupil Maj Jason Ward, who was killed when the US helicopter he was travelling in crashed in the Iraqi desert in 2003. Mr Ward was a pupil at the college at the same time as Mr Cox and they both joined the Royal Marines in to BBC Radio Devon, Mr Cox said: "That's one of the reasons why I've taken this to heart because of Jason."He added: "The wonderful thing is his mother is travelling with his brother down from Barnstaple to attend the ceremony, so she's going to be our guest of honour." Mr Cox said he had the idea for the memorial after seeing that the boards in the school, which showed former pupils who had been killed in combat, were looking "old and faded"."It was only going to be a small granite block with possibly a brass plaque on it with some appropriate wording," he said."It sort of morphed into something a lot larger and a lot bigger and the headmaster decided to include all of the names of all the pupils to put on the plaque." Speaking about the names of the fallen solders from the First World War, Mr Cox said all of the people were "local lads"."If you could imagine 112 lads being taken away from the local community and never seen again - it must have been quite devastating for the city," he said.A ceremony to unveil the memorial attended by members of government and the armed forces was held at the school on Friday.