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Emergency workers in Tennessee are responding to a blast at an explosives plant that left several people dead and others unaccounted for, officials said
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The Hickman County Sheriff’s Office said an incident occurred on the morning of Friday, Oct. 10
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Humphreys County Sheriff Chris Davis confirmed during a news conference that several people are dead and others are unaccounted for
Emergency workers in Tennessee are responding to a blast at an explosives plant that left several people dead and others unaccounted for, officials said.
The Hickman County Sheriff’s Office said an incident occurred on the morning of Friday, Oct. 10 in a social media statement.
“We can confirm there has been an explosion at Accurate Energetic Systems in the Bucksnort area. Emergency services are currently on the scene working to address the situation,” the sheriff’s office said.
Humphreys County Sheriff Chris Davis confirmed several people are dead and others are missing. He and other local officials gathered for a news conference shared by Fox affiliate WZTV hours after the initial incident unfolded.
About 7:45 a.m. local time, there was a “devastating blast” at the facility. “It encompassed one whole building,” Sheriff Davis said. Authorities are now working to communicate with victims’ families.
“We do have the scene as secure as possible at this time,” Davis said, adding representatives from the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives and other agencies are at the scene.
“We’ve got a lot of moving parts. We’ve got a very big investigation,” Davis said, adding the response is being handled as a joint operation between Humphreys County and Hickman County.
Davis also noted Accurate Energetic Systems is cooperating with authorities. “They’re wanting to figure out this just as much as we are,” he said.
The town of Bucksnort is about 60 miles southwest of Nashville, the state capital.
“Please avoid the area to allow emergency responders to do their work. If you are in the area, stay clear and follow the instructions from local authorities,” the Hickman County Sheriff’s Office continued in their online statement.
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Beyonica Holt, who lives a few miles away in Nunnelly, described the impact of the blast to The Tennessean.
“I thought I was going to die. It knocked stuff off my shelves,” Holt told the newspaper. “I thought we were at war or something.”
“I was standing in my bedroom. It shook the whole house,” Holt added. “I thought it was going to blow out my windows—it didn’t, but that’s how big it was.”
The cause of the explosion remains unclear.
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