Three people have died and four others are in hospital after a major incident at a care home in Dorset.
South Western Ambulance Service was called to Gainsborough Care Home in Ulwell Road, Swanage, around 5.20am on Wednesday.
It sent a hazard response team, 10 double-crewed ambulances and "a significant number of additional resources" to the scene, where they were joined by police, the fire brigade, and gas engineers.
A Dorset Police spokesman confirmed shortly before 1.30pm that three people were found dead, while four other people were taken to hospital in the “major incident”.
The deaths are being treated as “unexplained”, said police, and are being investigated.
Local Tory councillor Gary Suttle reportedly told radio station LBC the incident was being treated as a suspected carbon monoxide leak, but this has not been confirmed by police.
A major emergency service response has remained here in Ulwell Road since 8am pic.twitter.com/t8GphxpUV0
— Matt Simpson (@MattSimpsonEcho) October 23, 2024
The care home, run by Agincare, has 48 residents, all elderly and some with dementia.
All of the residents were evacuated to a nearby church hall on Wednesday morning, some in wheelchairs.
“There remains a significant multi-agency presence in place at the address and a cordon remains in place as we work with partners to carry out further enquiries,” said a Dorset Police spokesperson shortly before 1.30pm.
“At this time there is nothing to indicate any risk to the wider public.”
He added: “We understand this incident will have a significant impact on the Swanage community and our thoughts are very much with the families of those who have sadly died at this extremely difficult time.”
Staff were reportedly seen crying and hugging one another outside Gainsborough Care Home, while Southern Gas Network described the incident as “tragic”.
Bournemouth Echo reporter Matt Simpson, who was at the scene, wrote on X: “This is one of, if not the, biggest emergency response I’ve seen.
“Very sombre feeling, care home staff outside in tears and comforting one another.”
Katie Lobban, a spokesperson for Southern Gas Network said: “We were called to Gainsborough Care Home in Swanage earlier today in our capacity as the national gas emergency service for the south of England.
“Our engineers are waiting for access to the building to complete safety checks.
“Our thoughts are with everyone who has been affected by this tragic incident.”
Neil Tidball, group manager at Dorset and Wiltshire Fire Service, said four fire crews were scrambled to the scene around 7.45am to assist the ambulance service.
“We currently have four fire crews on scene from Swanage, Wareham, Westbourne, Poole, a support vehicle from Dorchester along with two crews from Winchester,” he said. “Firefighters are working with Dorset Police, South West Ambulance Service and other partners to resolve this incident.”
This is a breaking news story and is being updated.
