A father whose garden was burnt in an inferno has called explosive chemicals stored in garages near his home a ‘ticking time bomb’.

A team of 70 firefighters tackled a blaze in 30c heat at the workshop under the railway arches in Montague Road, Leytonstone, at 5.30pm on Wednesday evening.

The huge fire spread to a second car workshop causing four gas canisters to explode.

A man from a neighbouring car workshop attempted to tackle the blaze with a fire extinguisher before fleeing when the flames grew.

Some of the 100 people evacuated in the area said it was the third garage fire in a year including one under the railway arches in November.

An elderly man, who had to have regular dialysis treatment, was taken to Whipps Cross Hospital during his evacuation.

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Wreckage of storage shed left after the fire

70 firefighters from Leytonstone, Leyton, Walthamstow, Ilford, East Ham, Tottenham, Stratford and Stoke Newington dealt tackled the blaze with plumes of smoke seen from all over London.

Bob Ford, 63, had his garden shed destroyed and called for more safety checks on the businesses operating under the railway arches.

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Mr Ford lost nearly £2,000 worth of tools stored in his shed in the blaze.

“I was making a salad with my wife and I heard an explosion, it was horrific", he said.

“I called the fire brigade straight away and got my son to run down to the bridge and call Network Rail to stop the trains. That would have been a real disaster.”

Trains between Gospel Oak and Barking were cancelled because of the inferno and residents were evacuated from their homes for over 5 hours after fears more gas canisters could explode.

Mr Ford continued: “I was terrified my house wouldn’t be there when I came back. If it was left 5 minutes later it would have gone up, the fire services were fantastic.

“Those garages are in an absolute state and they have explosive materials for spraying around.

“It was a ticking time-bomb that was inevitably going to go off.

“This is what happens when you have so many industrial units close to people’s homes. The whole community is against it.

“I have been told the fire service are going to carry out safety checks on the other garages- but it is too late now the damage has already been done.”

"The rail company needs to make more spot checks on its arches before people are killed."

Linda Smith, 63, of Acacia Road said it was the third fire in a garage this year.

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Linda Smith and her daughter Tracy were prevented from going back to their home for five hours.

She said: “It was awful like a bomb going off. We were petrified we would lose everything. The flames were 60 foot high and produced thick black smoke.

“It was like a furnace in my garden.

“I am a diabetic so was desperate to get back into my house to get my medicine.

“We have ten garages in the vicinity it is not fair on us. We would love some different shops under the arches.”

The fire brigade said the cause of the fire is still under investigation.

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Police and fire brigade investigate the garage where the fire is believed to have started.