BERLIN: A fire erupted on Saturday at a refinery in southern Germany following an explosion, injuring at least eight people and forcing authorities to evacuate almost 2,000 local residents, police said.

The explosion took place at around 5:30 a.m. (0330 GMT) in a site owned by the Bayernoil group near the Bavarian city of Ingolstadt, on the banks of the Danube river.