Explosion and Fire at Chemical Plant in Kansas City

At about 2:20 in the afternoon, Wednesday, February 7th, several 55-gallon drums of chemicals exploded, causing several other explosions and fires at the plant. It was reported that nine employees were on the ground at the time, but so far no injuries have been reported.

The Chemcentral plant is located at 901 N. Prospect Avenue. According to crews, mineral spirits were involved in the fire. Craig Nienhueser, plant superintendent, said that within the plant before the explosion a hissing noise was heard. He then went into the back and saw flames, and immediately began evacuating employees.

Reports from employees of surrounding businesses indicate that others felt the shaking from the explosion, and lights and televisions flickered. Several families from the metro area reported the same. Police have been patrolling the surrounding area to warn that other explosions are expected.

The huge plume of smoke could be seen throughout the city. Authorities warned residents to stay away from the smoke, and to avoid falling debris as it could be toxic. People were also warned to not touch anything that had fallen from the smoke. The EPA, (Environmental Protection Agency) is keeping an eye on the situation and has yet to find ground pollutants, and it has been reported that anything falling is probably not dangerous either, but everyone is warned to stay away from the scene, regardless.

The crews let the fire burn out on its own, as using water to put it out could have caused dangerous environmental issues from the contaminated runoff. The fire could burn from either Thursday morning, or possibly even 72 hours.

Everyone within a one-mile radius was subject to the city’s mandatory evacuation. Roughly 500 people live in that area and police made sure everyone complied. Eight elementary schools are also located in that area and were ordered to evacuate as well, including McCoy, Garfield, Scarritt, Trailwoods, Whittier, Gladstone, Woodland and James. After school programs were closed at many schools as well. A Red Cross Shelter was set up in North Kansas City for the evacuees. The Kansas City School District employees as well as students were warned not to walk home.

The situation caused difficulty with traffic as the roads in the area were closed and detours were set up. The Paseo Bridge was also closed.

The area that the plant is located in is said to be troublesome for the fire department because it is so close to casinos and residential areas. The plant itself has a very good safety record. As plant superintended Nienhueser said, “Fifty some years and not a problem.”