Explosion at Jacksonville Chemical Plant

[Extremeweatherguy]

http://www.cnn.com/2007/US/12/19/florida.explosion/index.html

JACKSONVILLE, Florida (CNN) -- An explosion Wednesday at a chemical plant shook windows, rattled doors and sent a thick plume of smoke over a section of Jacksonville.

Police have cordoned off the entire area near Faye Road, closed off highway exits to the site and set about evacuating office workers from the industrial section of the city where the explosion occurred, said WTLV-TV reporter Grayson Kamm. At least 15 fire trucks were at the scene.

A spokesman for JEA, a Jacksonville power company, said it has a power generating plant across the street and was evacuating all nonessential employees from the building.

Carlton Higginbotham, 63, was at home on Townsend Boulevard in Jacksonville working when a loud boom shook his entire house, he said.

"It was a gunshot-type explosion; it wasn't a rumble," he said.

The insurance salesman and his neighbor ran outside and noticed a thick plume of smoke billowing up on the other side of the St. John's River that separates his neighborhood from the site of the blast.

"The cloud that came out of it was white, some would say mushroom-shaped," Higginbotham said. "It was followed by dark, dark smoke."

[Extremeweatherguy]

CNN - at least 2 are dead. Also, the shock-wave from the blast was felt miles away and blew doors off their hinges at a Holiday Inn 2 miles from the explosion.

[HURAKAN]

Wow, this is what happens when you play with fire. My condolences to the affected families.

CNN: 3 fatalities, 14 injured

[TexasStooge]

This is the 5th Plant explosion this year.

[Cryomaniac]

Sad to hear there are fatalities

Whats interesting to me, however, is that no-one has ruled out terrorism, which is the usually the first thing anyone does.

[Ptarmigan]

Sorry to hear this. It happens a lot in Houston area. So I can empathize with them.