Norway: 'Several Dead In Dairy Plant Blast'

A gas explosion at a dairy plant in Norway has killed at least one person and wounded three others, police have said.

Local media report that rescuers are also searching for five people believed to be missing following the blast in Fredrikstad, in the southeast of the country.

Rescue service spokesman Ola Vaage previously told the NTB news agency that several people are feared to have died or been seriously injured in the blast.

Rescue workers, ambulances and a helicopter were dispatched to the scene.

According to NTB, 20 to 25 people were working in the factory at the time of the explosion.

Police cordoned off the area and footage from the scene showed significant damage to parts of the plant as well as surrounding buildings. "One person is confirmed dead and three people have been injured," police in Fredrikstad said in an e-mailed statement.

The statement said a "large gas explosion" was involved and added that police had requested aid from Oslo, which is sending a bomb squad to the scene.

Hilde Floekstad, a manager at the Mills plant, told broadcaster NRK that service was being performed on a gas tank.

"When the gas tank was empty, something happened that led to the explosion," she said.

Mr Vaage told NTB that police were using dogs to search for five people who could be missing.

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