At least two people remained unaccounted for this Tuesday after a series of explosions at an industrial facility in Toledo, Ohio, which caused a large fire, partially collapsed the roof of the building and generated a huge column of black smoke.
The first calls to the 911 emergency service began shortly before 5:00 a.m., according to Toledo Fire Chief Allison Armstrong.
When emergency crews arrived at the scene, they found the building completely engulfed in flames and a thick cloud of black smoke billowing from the structure.
The situation forced the mobilization of additional firefighting units and teams specialized in hazardous materials.
Several explosions caused the partial collapse
According to Armstrong, the initial explosion was followed by several detonations within the facility.
The impact caused several tanks containing chemicals to rupture and fall.
One of the first firefighters to arrive on the scene radioed that the rear of the property was full of chemicals that could catch fire and cause new explosions.
Given the magnitude of the fire, firefighters activated a second alarm, which made it possible to request more personnel and specialized resources to control the emergency.
"We are dealing with an intense fire in the building. Part of the building has collapsed," Armstrong reported during a news conference.
Images released from the scene showed a huge column of black smoke rising over the area as emergency crews battled the flames.
Two people remain missing
One of the main challenges for emergency crews is determining how many employees were inside the facility when the explosions began.
Armstrong explained that the incident occurred during a shift change, so authorities were still trying to establish who was present.
“Unfortunately, we have two people who have not been located,” confirmed the Fire Chief.
So far, authorities had not confirmed any fatalities.
Several workers, however, were being treated for minor injuries, Armstrong said.
Emergency crews continued working to determine the exact number of people who were in the building and locate those who remained missing.
The facility was an industrial cleaning company
The affected facility was not a traditional factory, but rather an industrial cleaning operation, Armstrong explained.
“They clean items like rags, towels and things like that,” the Fire Chief said.
Precisely due to the presence of chemicals and potentially flammable materials, emergency teams had to act with special caution.
One of the firefighters who initially arrived at the scene warned of the risk that the stored chemicals could cause new explosions.
The presence of these materials also led authorities to deploy units specialized in hazardous materials.
Investigation seeks to determine what caused the explosions
Authorities have not yet established what caused the initial explosion.
The fire remained active while firefighters worked to contain it and reduce the risk of new explosions.
The priority of emergency teams was to control the flames, evaluate the stability of the structure and determine the whereabouts of the employees who remained missing.
The investigation into the causes of the incident will continue once conditions allow specialists to safely enter the scene.
