Two people have died following an explosion at a former steelworks in Redcar, police confirmed this morning.
The tragedy happened shortly after 2pm yesterday.
Last night it was declared a major incident by Cleveland Police.
It is thought the two men were contractors carrying out demolition work on the former SSI site.
Their families have been informed.
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Incident Commander, Detective Superintendent Tariq Ali, said: “We can now confirm that there have sadly been two fatalities as a result of an incident at the former SSI site in South Bank yesterday.
“The families of those two men have been informed and our thoughts remain with them at this very difficult time.”
Tees Valley Mayor Ben Houchen also issued a statement following the confirmation of the deaths.
He said: “Yesterday was a terrible and tragic day and all of our thoughts go out to the family, friends and colleagues of the two workers who were involved in the accident on site.
“It is impossible to imagine the pain and distress which this news will have brought the loved ones of those involved. All of the staff who work at the South Tees Development Corporation site are deeply shocked and sorry for this loss.
“All works on site have been suspended while investigations continue. The team is working with the emergency services and the Health and Safety Executive who will continue to have an ongoing presence on site.
“Let me be clear, we will examine every single detail of the work that was being conducted; we will make sure we do everything to understand exactly what happened and why.”
Yesterday an employee told Teesside Live: "It was the biggest bloody fireball I’ve ever seen. It was massive.
"I can only describe it as something you would see in the Gulf War. It went higher than the big tower.
"The ground shook and I heard a muffled sound. A bit like an airplane flying over. But I thought hang on, that’s way too close.
"That’s when I saw the huge fire ball go up.
"I was expecting metal and things to start flying everywhere but it didn’t happen like that. It was as though all the gasses just went up at once."
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