Residents from as far as Manor Gardens, Glenwood and Pinetown reported that they were woken up by a loud bang just after 7am.

A resident, who declined to be named, said she was getting her children ready for school when she heard the bang and ran to check the window.

“I first thought it was a tremor, when I heard the windows rattle, but saw smoke billowing in the sky,” she said.

According to Garrith Jamieson, an Advanced Life Support Paramedic, the area around the refinery precinct has been closed off to traffic while emergency teams attend to the fire.

He said from information received, it appears that some sort of tanker had exploded.

“The explosion has been felt in many parts of Durban, as far as Clare Estate.”

At this stage, it is unclear if there were any injuries or fatalities.

This is a developing story and updates will follow.

In 2005, an explosion rocked houses in Merebank when a fire broke out in a solvents tank at the Engen oil refinery in Durban.

Dr Ram Rambeharie, who lives near the refinery, said the explosion had shaken his house.

’’The sirens sounded twice, which meant there was something serious. If they had sounded one more time, it would have meant an evacuation,’’ he said.

A massive explosion has taken place at the Engen Oil Refinery in Tara Road, south of Durban, on Friday morning.

BREAKING: There’s been a massive explosion at the Engen Oil Refinery on Tara Road in Merebank this morning. More to follow. @ecr9495

Video: Supplied pic.twitter.com/VPdQvnb1OB

— ECR_Newswatch (@ECR_Newswatch) December 4, 2020

UPDATE: eNCA reports seven people are being treated for smoke inhalation in hospital following an explosion at an Engen refinery in Durban.

KwaZulu-Natal Emergency Medical Services officer, Robert McKenzie says the cause of the blast is not yet known. "The exact cause of the fire or explosion is not known at this stage. We do know that after 7am this morning there was an explosion at the refinery resulting in a fire and big smoke which rose quite high," he said.

Flats across the road from the refinery are reportedly being evacuated. Emergency services are on the scene.

IOL