16.40 UPDATE: With no trace of a gas leak to be found, Scotland Yard are saying this explosion might be murder.

10.00 Firefighters are still on the scene of a major suspected gas explosion which happened around 21.40 last night, on a residential street in South Harrow. The blast completed wrecked a house and 2 flats. At this stage, one man has been found dead and two more people are in hospital.

At the height of the incident last night, six fire engines and around 30 firefighters were at the scene. About 30 terrified residents were evacuated from Stanley Road to a nearby British Legion building whilst the fire brigade attempted to ascertain whether anyone else was trapped in the rubble and worked to secure the affected buildings.

So far, bizarrely, no evidence of a gas leak has been found but gas engineers are at the scene trying to establish the cause of the blast.