Film set explosion causes blaze opposite O2 arena

A “controlled explosion” on a London film set sparked a fire that destroyed a van and damaged two other vehicles near the O2 arena in Greenwich on Saturday night.

The London Fire Brigade (LFB) said 25 firefighters and four fire engines responded to the scene, near Dock Road and Trinity Buoy Wharf in Silvertown, at around 7.50pm on Saturday.

Terrified residents posted on social media site X about large blasts and smoke billowing across the Thames towards the Greenwich venue – before police said the incident was part of pre-planned filming.

“There is no risk to the public”, a spokesman from the Met said.

But, the controlled explosion spread and became out of control, the LFB said in a statement.

One van was destroyed by the fire and most of a car and lorry were damaged. The blaze was brought under control by around 9pm.

There are no reports of injuries, the LFB said.

A Met spokesman said: “The Met was made aware of the pre-planned filming, including the use of explosives, prior to the event taking place on the evening of Saturday, August 31. 

“It appears this information was not disseminated as widely as it should have been and we are looking at the systems currently in place to establish why this was the case in this instance.”

Pictured top: The fire was captured on video by a resident in Greenwich (Picture: Chris Stroud)