Context:

A massive industrial fire in Essex has drawn more than 100 firefighters, with residents advised to close doors and windows and avoid the area as a large plume of black smoke and flames rises from the site between East Hanningfield and Rettendon. Response teams including the Essex County Fire and Rescue Service and the East of England Ambulance Service are on scene, while a bystander’s drone footage indicates extensive fire affecting multiple fields and two industrial complexes. The incident is unfolding with ongoing updates and a readiness to provide further information as it becomes available. The situation underscores significant disruption and active response efforts as crews work to control the blaze.

Dive Deeper:

• More than 100 firefighters are tackling a blaze at a large industrial unit in Essex, with emergency services actively responding to the incident.

• Residents near the site are being told to keep windows and doors closed and to avoid the area if possible, due to a vast plume of black smoke and visible flames.

• A bystander, Colin Neale, used a drone to document the scene from above, observing multiple fields on fire and the involvement of two industrial complexes according to his footage.

• The East of England Ambulance Service is also in attendance, indicating coordinated multi-agency emergency response to the incident.

• The article notes the breaking news nature of the event and that further details will be published as the situation develops, with updates expected in the near term.