A FIRE that was described as "devastating" and reportedly caused explosions and houses to shake, has hit a Cowdenbeath business.

Emergency services raced to Woodend Industrial Estate, Broad Street, on Tuesday morning after the blaze broke out at Cowdenbeath Taxi Service shortly before 8am.

The incident, which was still ongoing shortly before the Times went to print, saw seven fire appliances attend to bring the outbreak under control after the alarm was raised by members of the public.

Local residents on social media said that they had heard several explosions, causing their houses to shake, as a result of the incident, in which it is believed there have been no injuries.

In a post on their Facebook page, the firm said: "As most will know we have had a fire in our yard this morning.

"All our staff are ok and safe. We are still out working from a remote location and will continue to offer the same service as much as possible.

"Thanks for all the messages of concern."

The firm confirmed that they had three members of staff on site at the time of the incident and, in stressing that they would be looked after, thanked the public for their messages of concern.

On Twitter, Kirkcaldy and Cowdenbeath MP Lesley Laird said that she was awaiting an official report from the emergency services, wrote: "Thankfully, those near the explosion at the time managed to escape without injury, but I understand the damage to some units has been devastating."

Residents living close to the industrial estate, which contains a large number of businesses, posted their shock on social media.

One user said wrote: "The first explosion shook my house. Hope everyone is ok. It looks bad."

Another wrote: "I live at the back of it and the whole house shook."

The Scottish Fire and Rescue Service were unable to provide a further update on the incident before the Times went to print, but had confirmed they were tackling a fire "at a business premises in Woodend Industrial Estate, Cowdenbeath", adding: "Operations Control mobilised seven fire appliances to the scene after the alarm was raised at 7.59am."