A chemical explosion sparked a major fire at a battery factory in Crawley last night.
A dozen fire crews from West Sussex and Surrey were called to the blaze at the AEA Technology building in Crompton Way.
Police, fearing hazardous lithium could be released from the burning plant, warned local people to keep their windows and doors shut.
Firefighters wore gas-tight suits to enter the building and search for the source of the fire.
The alarm was sounded at 4.35pm after a small explosion in the testing room.
The factory produces lithium batteries, used to power laptop computers and cell phones.
It took the fire brigade several hours to put out the flames.
Andrew Strange of AEA Technologies said: "The cause of the fire is subject to a detailed investigation. There were no injuries to any of our staff but the incident is obviously quite distressing.
"We have about 70 staff who work there and those who had not already left for the day had to be evacuated."
Comments: Our rules
We want our comments to be a lively and valuable part of our community - a place where readers can debate and engage with the most important local issues. The ability to comment on our stories is a privilege, not a right, however, and that privilege may be withdrawn if it is abused or misused.
Please report any comments that break our rules.
Read the rules hereComments are closed on this article