Hare Krishna temple in central England hit by gas blast; no injuries reported

LONDON - A gas explosion ripped through a Hare Krishna temple in central England on Friday, officials said, destroying part of the building but leaving no one injured.

Firefighters put out the fire after a few hours, but not before it destroyed a third of the temple in Leicester, about 100 miles (160 kilometres) north of London. Rescuers combing the rubble for trapped worshippers said everyone was accounted for.

"The temple has been burnt, basically destroyed, but no one was hurt, that is the best news," said Varsana Devi-Dasi, a spokeswoman for the International Society for Krishna Consciousness.

Temple officials said the explosion was caused by a gas leak at the temple.

"It was not an attack," Devi-Dasi said.

Gauranga Sundara Das, director of a separate Hare Krishna temple in the same city, said the gas leak started in the temple kitchen when about 30 people gathered at there to celebrate a birthday. The group heard the sound of gas escaping and got out, he said.

Four people, including a firefighter, were treated at the scene for minor injuries, ambulance officials said.