Huge blaze breaks out near Hyde Park in central London

A major fire has broken out at a hotel near Hyde Park in central London.

Smoke rising from a building in Knightsbridge, central London. Picture: John Stillwell/PA Wire

Guests and staff were evacuated from the luxury Mandarin Oriental Hotel in Knightsbridge as 120 firefighters tackled a large fire on the roof.

London Fire Brigade said 20 engines and 120 firefighters and officers had been sent to the scene as huge plumes of thick black smoke could be seen rising into the sky.