Skip to main content
Saturday, November 7, 2026Nov 7

This story is free to read.

Rescuers hunt for 3 missing after UK power plant collapse

Didcot Power Station in Didcot, England, which partially collapsed on Tuesday Feb. 23, 2016. The unused power station collapsed killing one person and injuring others, British emergency services said. Describing the collapse as a "major incident," Oxfordshire fire services said search operations at the Didcot plant 60 miles (100 kilometers) west of London were ongoing and three people were still reported missing. (Ben Birchall/PA via AP) UNITED KINGDOM OUT
Didcot Power Station in Didcot, England, which partially collapsed on Tuesday Feb. 23, 2016. The unused power station collapsed killing one person and injuring others, British emergency services said. Describing the collapse as a "major incident," Oxfordshire fire services said search operations at the Didcot plant 60 miles (100 kilometers) west of London were ongoing and three people were still reported missing. (Ben Birchall/PA via AP) UNITED KINGDOM OUT Didcot Power Station in Didcot, England, which partially collapsed on Tuesday Feb. 23, 2016. The unused power station collapsed killing one person and injuring others, British emergency services said. Describing the collapse as a "major incident," Oxfordshire fire services said search operations at the Didcot plant 60 miles (100 kilometers) west of London were ongoing and three people were still reported missing. (Ben Birchall/PA via AP) UNITED KINGDOM OUT

LONDON (AP) – Rescue workers with sniffer dogs are searching through a 30-foot (9-meter) mound of rubble for three workers missing since part of a mothballed British power plant collapsed.

One person has died and five are still hospitalized Wednesday after the collapse at Didcot power station, 60 miles (100 kilometers) west of London.

The industrial accident occurred at an old coal- and oil-fueled plant that has been closed since 2013 and is slated for demolition. The facility also houses an operating gas-powered plant.

Owner Npower said part of the old power station collapsed while a demolition contractor was working on it, sending a huge cloud of dust into the air.

Some 50 people were treated for dust inhalation. The fire service said no hazardous materials were found in the building.