FEARS a faulty oxy-acetylene cylinder could explode hurling shards of metal over distances of up to a mile prompted the emergency evacuation of half a dozen businesses on a trading estate.

Two fire crews were placed on duty overnight at Maple Drive, Hartlebury Trading Estate, and water was sprayed continually on the cylinder for 24 hours in order to cool it down.

The incident was sparked at about 10am on Wednesday after a flashback in the hose of an oxy-acetylene torch, lit by Mervyn Billingham, owner of Hartlebury Tyre and Exhaust Centre.

Mr Billingham, of Stourport, said: "I lit the torch to cut through an exhaust and a flash went through the hose.

"Luckily I had equipment installed to stop the flame going into the cylinder.

"There was no way it could have exploded but the cylinder was hot and the fire services had to take every precaution."

Fire crews from Kidderminster were scrambled and arrived to find the fire extinguished.

However, when it was found the cylinder was hot, they evacuated the unit together with neighbouring firms and units within a radius of 200 metres until 9.30am the following day.

Afterwards, Mr Billingham played down concern the cylinder could have blown up, and said he had never had a similar incident occur in 30 years of working with oxy-acetylene equipment.

But Kidderminster fire station sub-officer Pete Smith said the volatile nature of the gases involved meant once a cylinder was hot it had to be treated as a bomb which could hurl debris for up to a mile.