Massive Explosion And Fire At ANOTHER Processing Plant

A huge explosion at a processing plant in Illinois resulted in a raging fire that injured eight employees and caused major structural damage.

The explosion took place on Monday evening at the Archer Daniels Midland facility in Decatur, Illinois.

Six of the employees injured in the explosion were taken to a nearby hospital via ambulance and their current conditions are unknown.

The cause of the explosion and fire is still under investigation.

Here are some photos of the scene:

Massive explosion at ADM Decatur, Illinois. As of 8pm the fire is burning on several levels of the corn plant and unfortunately there are several trauma victims. pic.twitter.com/ppU39uQULZ

— Shaun Tyson (@ShaunPTyson) September 11, 2023

8 injured in explosion, fire at Archer Daniels Midland facility in Decatur, Illinois https://t.co/11mBopEtEh

— KSDK News (@ksdknews) September 11, 2023

Check out what USA Today reported:

An explosion and fire at a processing plant in Illinois injured eight employees and severely damaged multiple buildings Sunday evening, authorities said.

The explosion occurred just after 7 p.m. at the east plant of the Archer Daniels Midland facility in Decatur, Illinois, about 40 miles east of Springfield. ADM is one of the world’s largest nutrition companies.

Of the eight employees who were hurt, six were taken to a nearby hospital via ambulance, Daniel Kline, deputy chief of the Decatur Fire Department, told USA TODAY in an email. The extent of the injuries and the cause of the fire are unknown, he said.

Four helicopters were used to rush the injured workers to trauma centers, a statement from the fire department said.

As of Monday morning, the fire was under control, but a fire crew remained at the site with ADM personnel to make sure all the fires were out, according to the release. No evacuation of nearby residents was warranted, Kline added.

According to the fire department, the blaze was in a 10-story building that’s adjoined by two other buildings to the north and south, all of which received significant damage. Large chunks of debris and building material complicated the effort to put out the flames, causing firefighters to rope off certain areas and carefully assess where it was safe to go.

UPDATE: Decatur, Illinois fire releases detailed report on ADM explosion and fire. Multiple workers hospitalized.
OSHA opens investigation | https://t.co/Iz40YaQM3q https://t.co/MvEoBh7zho

— DivorcedFromJustice (@2KindsJustice) September 11, 2023

Per WCIA:

The Decatur Fire Department has released further details about the explosion at ADM’s plant Sunday night, including a detailed summary of events, as the Occupational Safety and Health Administration begins an investigation.

The department received the first reports of the explosion and subsequent fire at 7:12 p.m. The first truck to arrive was led to the area of the blast, which happened at the ADM East processing plant, and the firefighters found several injured workers, debris scattered over a wide area and fires burning in a 10-story building.

ADVERTISEMENT

From the reports they were hearing while en-route, the Battalion Chief upgraded the response to a second alarm. A total of 33 firefighters responded to the plant.

Officials said a number of buildings were damaged, with several large pieces of suspended debris posing a hazard to firefighters. Rail cars initially posed an obstacle to firefighting efforts, but they were moved out of the way to provide more access to the building on fire.