Two people are fighting for life after an explosion at a chemical manufacturing plant in Louisville, Kentucky left 12 people in hospital.
The blast rocked Louisville’s Clifton Neighborhood on Tuesday afternoon, Mayor Craig Greenburg said at a press conference. Multiple victims suffered burn and crush injuries in the incident, with aerial footage showing significant damage at the scene of the explosion.
Residents across the city reported hearing a large boom, with lights flickering and buildings shaking from the impact of the blast on Tuesday afternoon at around 3 p.m. local time.
The University of Louisville Hospital received seven of the injured employees, officials said. Two of the employees are in critical condition as of Tuesday evening, chief medical officer Jason Smith said.
According to officials, there was a “hazardous materials incident” at the Givaudan Sense Colour plant —a Swiss-based fragrance and food coloring company — which prompted a shelter-in-place order for those within a one-mile radius. The University of Louisville Hospital has since activated its “decontamination unit/procedures,” officials said.
Greenburg also told reporters that, despite concerns, the air quality was “fine,” though the cause of the explosion was unknown and would be under investigation “for some time.”
He added that employees of the plant, working in the building had said “everything was normal activity when the explosion occurred.”
The Louisville Fire Department called the explosion a “large scale incident.” As a result, several roads in the immediate area were closed and public transport was diverted.
Many businesses near the facility also had their windows blown out by the blast, local outlet WDRB reports, and several local schools delayed their dismissal time at the request of emergency officials.
A previous explosion occurred at the same plant in 2003, according to WDRB. That blast, which caused the release of aqua ammonia, killed one employee, the outlet reports.
