Emergency crews are battling a fire outside the Ukrainian capital, Kiev, following a huge blast at a fuel depot. Officials say at least eight petrol storage tanks, with a total capacity of up to 900 cubic metres (32,000 cu ft), are ablaze. The fire started on Monday.

Interior Minister Arsen Avakov tweeted: "There has been an explosion at the oil depot near Vasylkiv. A huge one." Three firefighters are unaccounted for and another six have been taken to hospital, officials say.

The casualties were being treated in hospital for burns and poisoning.

The fire at the depot, next to Hlevakha airbase and near the village of Vasylkiv, sent a huge pall of smoke over the surrounding area.

The blaze broke out on Monday evening in one tank and spread to neighbouring containers, Ukraine's emergencies ministry said (in Ukrainian).

An official from Ukraine's petrol industry told the BBC that the explosion had occurred at 08:30 local time (06:30 BST) on Tuesday.

Two hundred firefighters were trying to bring the fire under control. There was no initial information about what might have caused the blast.