Massive Explosion at Chemical Plant Along the Mississippi River

Explosions rocked the Dow Chemical Plant in Plaquemine, Louisiana, Friday night.

Emergency crews and other agencies responded to the situation after six explosions were detected at the facility around 9:30 p.m.

Officials urged nearby residents to stay indoors and take shelter.

Authorities reported that they did not detect any chemical leaks resulting from the fire at the chemical plant.

“Witnesses living nearby caught video of massive flames and said the shockwave was felt from miles away, including in parts of Baton Rouge,” WBRZ reports.

Raws Alerts obtained video from the explosions:

🚨#BREAKING: Massive explosion reported at the Dow Chemical Plant

📌#Plaquemine | #Louisiana

There has been a massive explosion at the Dow Chemical Plant in Plaquemine, Louisiana. Emergency crews and other agencies are currently responding to the situation. Officials are… pic.twitter.com/YVMkxz6SzU

— R A W S A L E R T S (@rawsalerts) July 15, 2023

WBRZ reports:

All plant personnel has since been accounted for, and the firefighters appeared to have the flames under control as of around 11 p.m.

Parish officials issued a shelter-in-place order for a half-mile radius surrounding the plant, though there is nothing from officials indicating that there was any imminent danger.

The Iberville Parish Council posted to Facebook:

WE CONTINUE TO BE IN CONTACT DOW CHEMICAL LEADERS, THEY HAVE ASSURED US THEY ARE NOT PICKING UP ANY READINGS ON THE AIR MONITORS** THE SHELTER IN PLACE REMAINS UNTIL WE GET ASSURANCE FROM DOW CHEMICAL THAT THE FIRE IS OUT**

THIS IS A MESSAGE FROM THE IBERVILLE PARISH OFFICE OF EMERGENCY PREPAREDNESS

OUR OFFICE WAS MADE AWARE OF AN INCIDENT AT DOW PLAQUEMINE. THE IBERVILLE PARISH COUNCIL OFFICE OF EMERGENCY PREPAREDNESS HAS ISSUED A HALF-MILE RADIUS SHELTER IN PLACE FOR RESIDENTS NEAR THE DOW CHEMICAL FACILITY IN PLAQUEMINE.

WE HAVE BEEN INFORMED BY DOW THAT ALL PERSONNEL HAS BEEN ACCOUNTED FOR. THE SHELTER-IN-PLACE HAS BEEN ISSUED OUT OF AN ABUNDANCE OF CAUTION UNTIL WE ARE CERTAIN THE PUBLIC IS NO LONGER IN DANGER.

DOW HAS ADVISED OUR OFFICE THEY ARE DOING AIR MONITORING AND ARE NOT PICKING UP ANY READINGS AT THIS TIME.

WBRZ added:

Dow Louisiana Operations released the following statement:

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“Dow’s Emergency Operations Center is working closely with local and state agencies to respond to the incident on our Louisiana Operations site. All personnel are safe and accounted for. Air monitoring has not detected hazardous materials in the air.”

Last year, a major chlorine leak at the Olin plant on that same property also forced residents in Plaquemine to shelter inside their homes. Parish President Mitch Ourso later criticized the plant’s response to that situation, saying the company initially misrepresented just how dangerous the situation really was.

The same Olin facility was previously cited for failing safety checks in the past.