A BUSY borough road was closed this morning (Thursday, 8 August) following a gas leak.

Firefighters and police attended the incident on Southend Road in Grays and evacuated shops and homes.

The road was closed between Whitehall Road and Chadwell Road and the source of the leak was identified as a house on the College Avenue side.

The scene in February 2020.

The same area was the subject of an explosion in February 2022, which destroyed the frontage of the Bilash Indian restaurant.

Today's leak passed without major incident and the road was reopened around 10am when Cadent Gas engineers took charge of the scene.

A spokesperson for Essex Police said: "We were called to support the fire service after reports of a gas leak at a property on Southend Road in Grays this morning.

"Thankfully the scene was quickly made safe and there's no wider threat to the public.

"We'd like to thank the local residents for their support while we evacuated the surrounding area to allow the fire service and our officers to carry out their work.

"Our investigation into the cause of the leak is ongoing – if you have any information that may help, please speak to one of the officers at the scene or get in touch quoting incident number 261 of today, Thursday 8 August.

"You can let us know by submitting a report on our website where you can use our online Live Chat service available Monday to Friday (excluding public holidays) between 10am-9pm.

"Visit https://www.essex.police.uk/digital101to find out more about our website reporting services. Alternatively, you can call us on 101.

"If you would like to make an anonymous report, you can contact independent charity Crimestoppers on Twitter at @CrimestoppersUK, by visiting their website or by calling 0800 555 111."