Even more so than the London bombings, the recent Buncefield oil depot explosion has prompted an unprecedented response from citizen journalists who have sent thousands of emails, photographs and video clips of the disaster to news websites.

The BBC received more than 6 500 emails with video and photograhic coverage of the explosion and oil fires, as compared to 1 000 in the aftermath of the London bombings. The first pictures and video footage came in minutes after the explosion.

Head of BBC News interactive Pete Clifton said the following about the material received from readers: "The range of material we received from our readers was absolutely extraordinary. Video, still pictures and emails poured in from the moment the blast happened, and it played a central part in the way we reported the unfolding events."

On the day the explosion took place, half a million users logged on to the BBC website in order to view the pictures and videos, this response was second only to the traffic that was sparked by the London bombings.

This is a clear example of the demand that exists for accounts and visual footage of key events from citizen journalists, and the success that news websites can garner by offering their users access to such material.

Source: MediaGuardian

P.S. See here for citizen journalists' photos