Staff and guests were evacuated from an an exclusive central London hotel after a large fire that sent thick plumes of smoke billowing above the capital took hold.

London Fire Brigade (LFB) sent 20 fire engines and 120 firefighters to tackle the blaze at the Mandarin Oriental in Knightsbridge on Wednesday afternoon after receiving more than 40 emergency calls from the public.

Paramedics also attended but a London Ambulance Services spokesman said no one at the scene had required medical attention.

Staff were evacuated to Hyde Park, alongside people from neighbouring buildings.

LFB was first called to the William Street hotel at 3.55pm. Fire crews from Kensington, Hammersmith, Battersea and Chelsea were sent to the 155-year-old, 12-storey property, it said.

The Sloane Street entrance to Knightsbridge station was closed at the request of emergency workers.

The cause of the fire is unknown and LFB crews were “likely to be on the scene throughout the night”, the body said.

“I was walking outside and I saw this very heavy smoking, very heavy, and people were shouting ‘the hotel is burning, the Mandarin is burning’,” Ahmed Abid, owner of a nearby salon told The Independent.

“It is a very famous hotel, very expensive.

“People were worried but immediately the ambulance and the police were coming and they closed off the road. They got everyone out of the hotel very quickly and into Hyde Park.

“I did not see any flames, just very dense smoke, it was extremely thick.”

The building underwent an “extensive restoration” ending late last month and costing several million pounds, its owner company Mandarin Oriental Hotel Group said in May.

A column of dark smoke could be seen billowing from the upper levels of the period hotel, which has 181 suites and is between Hyde Park and Knightsbridge’s shopping district, which includes Harrods.

London Ambulance Service said it had sent “multiple crews” including its hazardous area response team, while the Metropolitan Police also attended the incident.

London fire: Blaze at the Mandarin Oriental hotel in Knightsbridge Show all 8 1 /8 London fire: Blaze at the Mandarin Oriental hotel in Knightsbridge London fire: Blaze at the Mandarin Oriental hotel in Knightsbridge Smoke rising from a building in Knightsbridge, central London, as London Fire Brigade said fifteen fire engines and 97 firefighters and officers have been called to a fire. PRESS ASSOCIATION Photo. Picture date: Wednesday June 6, 2018. See PA story FIRE Knightsbridge. Photo credit should read: John Stillwell/PA Wire PA London fire: Blaze at the Mandarin Oriental hotel in Knightsbridge LONDON, ENGLAND - JUNE 06: Firefighters attend a fire at Mandarin Oriental Hotel on June 6, 2018 in London, England. Around 100 firefighters are attending a large fire at a five-star luxury hotel in the Knightsbridge area. (Photo by Jack Taylor/Getty Images) Getty Images London fire: Blaze at the Mandarin Oriental hotel in Knightsbridge Grab taken with permission from a video posted on twitter by @jackwmartin of smoke rising from a building in Knightsbridge, central London, as London Fire Brigade said fifteen fire engines and 97 firefighters and officers have been called to a fire. PRESS ASSOCIATION Photo. Issue date: Wednesday June 6, 2018. See PA story FIRE Knightsbridge. Photo credit should read: @jackwmartin/PA Wire NOTE TO EDITORS: This handout photo may only be used in for editorial reporting purposes for the contemporaneous illustration of events, things or the people in the image or facts mentioned in the caption. Reuse of the picture may require further permission from the copyright holder. PA London fire: Blaze at the Mandarin Oriental hotel in Knightsbridge LONDON, ENGLAND - JUNE 06: Firefighters attend a fire at Mandarin Oriental Hotel on June 6, 2018 in London, England. Around 100 firefighters are attending a large fire at a five-star luxury hotel in the Knightsbridge area. (Photo by Jack Taylor/Getty Images) Getty Images London fire: Blaze at the Mandarin Oriental hotel in Knightsbridge Firefighters tackle a blaze at the Mandarin Oriental Hotel in Knightsbridge, central London, Britain, june 6, 2018. REUTERS/Henry Nicholls REUTERS London fire: Blaze at the Mandarin Oriental hotel in Knightsbridge Smoke rising from a building in Knightsbridge, central London, as London Fire Brigade said fifteen fire engines and 97 firefighters and officers have been called to a fire. PRESS ASSOCIATION Photo. Picture date: Wednesday June 6, 2018. See PA story FIRE Knightsbridge. Photo credit should read: John Stillwell/PA Wire PA London fire: Blaze at the Mandarin Oriental hotel in Knightsbridge Smoke rising from a building in Knightsbridge, central London, as London Fire Brigade said fifteen fire engines and 97 firefighters and officers have been called to a fire. PRESS ASSOCIATION Photo. Picture date: Wednesday June 6, 2018. See PA story FIRE Knightsbridge. Photo credit should read: John Stillwell/PA Wire PA London fire: Blaze at the Mandarin Oriental hotel in Knightsbridge Smoke rising from a building in Knightsbridge, central London, as London Fire Brigade said fifteen fire engines and 97 firefighters and officers have been called to a fire. PRESS ASSOCIATION Photo. Picture date: Wednesday June 6, 2018. See PA story FIRE Knightsbridge. Photo credit should read: John Stillwell/PA Wire PA

“I was sat in my shop and I saw it was smoking so much and I asked next door if there was something wrong inside - they told me something was happening outside,” said shopkeeper Joseph Suliaman.

“I saw more and more smoke and I had no idea what was going on, it was really bad, inside you could smell it, even in Harrods they could smell it, 10 minutes’ walk away you can smell it.

“People were nervous a little bit of course, it smelt very bad, very strong.”

The hotel is connected to the prestigious One Hyde Park development, which boasts the most expensive addresses in London.

The apartments have been known to go on the market for as much as £75m and guests can use the facilities at the neighbouring hotel, such as the private cinema. They can also order room service from Heston Blumenthal’s restaurant ‘Dinner’ – famous for its innovative menu.

Emergency services, including fire engines and ambulances, were still arriving at around 4.45pm. Flames could be seen around the top of the hotel, and extended ladders were erected to access that area of the building.

A local businesswoman, who asked not to be named, said: “The fire was in the middle of the Mandarin Oriental Hotel. There was a lot of smoke. I couldn’t see anyone being evacuated but they had closed off the whole road.

“It’s quite a lot of smoke, you could smell it. I could see a lot of fire engines and police cars and some ambulances as well.”