THICK black smoke billowed over Leytonstone this afternoon after a van exploded on the A12.

The van caught fire on the A12 eastbound direction causing smoke to rise, engulfing passengers coming out of Leytonstone tube station onto Grove Green Road and those waiting at the bus stop.

Loud explosions could be heard coming from the van and crowds cleared the area as they got louder and the smoke got thicker.

Saf Hussain, who runs a newsagent at the station's exit, said: “We started seeing black smoke and it got worse and worse. At first people thought it was a train.

“People were running towards the bridge to see what it was, but then they started running away because it got so thick and black and it the sky became very dark.”

Leytonstone firefighters were called at 5.19pm and extinguished the fire but traffic delays were caused during the rush hour.