HUGE fire at famous 5-star London hotel just one week after a £185m refurbishment

TWENTY fire engines and 120 firefighters have been called to a massive fire at the 5-star Mandarin Oriental Hotel in Knightsbridge.

Three ambulances were also rushed to the scene as a "precautionary measure".

The luxury hotel unveiled a £185 million refurbishment of its rooms and facilities just last week. The 18-month project to transform all 181 bedrooms, along with public areas was unveiled to press on May 31.

This afternoon (Wednesday) thick plumes of black smoke could be seen billowing into the sky above the luxury west London hotel this afternoon.

Videos taken at the scene and posted on Twitter appeared to show the flames centered towards the upper portion of the building, if not its roof.

In a statement, London Fire Brigade (LFB) said: "20 fire engines and 120 firefighters and officers have been called to a visible fire in William Street in Knightsbridge.

Mandarin oriental hotel is on #Fire #London pic.twitter.com/lwlNcy0lhl

— David Rodger-Sharp (@DavidJrSharp) June 6, 2018

"The Brigade's 999 control officers have taken more than 35 calls to the fire, which is producing a lot of smoke.

"The Brigade was called at 15:55. Fire crews from Chelsea, Kensington, Hammersmith, Battersea and other surrounding fire stations are at the scene.

"The cause of the fire is not known at this stage."

Rooms at the exclusive Mandarin Oriental - which sits at the top of the exclusive shopping district and has views of Hyde Park - start at £600 per night. The Royal Suite would put you back around £18,000 a night.

The building underwent a £185million refurbishment just last month, when it was kitted out with new bedrooms, public areas, restaurants and dining spaces and a new spa.

The Mandarin is next to One Hyde Park, which houses some of the most expensive private residences in London. Apartments in the super-rich block have been sold for as much as £160 million.

Roads between Scotch Corner and Hyde Park Corner have been closed while emergency services deal with the blaze.