New Delhi, 10 Nov: A high-intensity explosion ripped through a car parked near the Red Fort metro station on Monday evening, gutting several vehicles and killing at least eight people, officials said.

Twenty-four people were injured in the blast that took place on a busy evening when the area was milling with people. The injured were taken to the LNJP hospital a few kilometres away.

A high alert has been sounded in Delhi. Ten fire tenders were rushed to the spot with police cordoning off the area, the Delhi Fire Services said. The fire, officials said, was brought under control by 7.29 pm.

“Six cars, two erickshaws and one autorickshaw were gutted in the fire,” said a fire department official.

A team of the National Investigation Agency (NIA) reached the spot.

The blast was so powerful that it shattered the windows of vehicles parked several metres away. The sound was heard at ITO a few kilometres away.