An explosion and inferno burned at a chemical plant in LaSalle, Illinois, on Wednesday (Picture: AP)
A huge fire erupted at a chemical plant following an explosion, prompting an order for residents to shelter-in-place.
The explosion happened around 9am on Wednesday at a complex in LaSalle, which is about 100 miles southwest of Chicago, Illinois, and has a population of less than 10,000.
All of the workers at the plant evacuated and no one was hurt, according to a spokesperson for Carus LLC, the family-owned company running the plant.
Videos shared on social media showed plumes of black smoke spewing from the site. Several buildings in the complex were obliterated or damaged.
To view this video please enable JavaScript, and consider upgrading to a web
browser that
supports HTML5
video
Police announced to the public that a green-colored oxidizer leaked into the area and warned against touching it.
Carus manufactures the oxidant that is used to treat drinking and waste water. It is also used on phosphates for controlling corrosion and on carbon capture products for purifying air, its website states.
‘Our fire departments have done a great job of bringing this down,’ Deputy City Clerk Brent Bader told WLS-TV.
‘Obviously, when they arrived on scene it was quite a worse situation.’
Get in touch with our news team by emailing us at [email protected].
For more stories like this, check our news page.
Residents were ordered to shelter-in-place.
