Howth Coast Guard are waiting in the Phoenix Park to receive injured people being flown in from a major explosion at a petrol station.
Earlier this afternoon, an explosion destroyed a service station in Donegal and it is understood some people remain trapped inside the building. The explosion happened at the Applegreen Service Station on the outskirts of the village of Creeslough just after 3pm.
Roads into the village have been cordoned off and Emergency services including fire brigades and ambulances are at the scene. People have been airlifted from the site of the explosion to hospitals.
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Howth Coast Guard have setup at the Phoenix Park anticipating injured being flown in. They tweeted: "This evening, we were tasked to the Phoenix Park in Dublin to assist with a Landing Zone (LZ) for inbound helicopters from our colleagues in Mulroy Coast Guard at the explosion and multi-agency major incident at Creeslough."
Sinn Fein TD for Donegal Pearse Doherty told RTE the situation is a "worst nightmare". He said: "This is something that is your worst nightmare. This is a quiet village. A very close-knit village.
"This is the only shop in town - it's the petrol station, it's the deli counter, it's the post office, it's where the hair dresser is."
"A massive explosion that could be heard for miles around ripped right though this building and it is very sombre here. There are people still trapped within the building and the emergency services are doing everything that they can to remove the rubble."
He added: "People are being airlifted away to hospitals in the region. There are dark, dark clouds above the community of Creeslough and further afield."
The explosion has resulted in a major collapse at the premises. A number of cars have been damaged as a result of falling debris.
The main part of the building which also contains apartments have been severely damaged.
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