Date: April 29, 2021
Location: Affton, Missouri (USA)
Address: 6901 Heege Road, 63123
Type: Potential Dust Explosion
Fuel: Unknown
Industry: Chemical Products
Equipment: Unknown
Company: Manor Chemical Company Inc.
Database Incidents: None Recorded
Loss: One Injured
Capital Cost: Unknown
Status: Open
Confirmation: Unconfirmed
Company Description:
According to its website, Manor Chemical Company Inc. supplies chemical products to automotive aftermarket, dry cleaning, paint and coatings, and industrial manufacturing industries. It is headquartered in Affton, Missouri and was founded in 1967.
Incident Description:
On April 29, 2021, KMOV4 reported a fire at a chemical products manufacturer in Affton, Missouri.
The fire ignited at around 2:30 p.m. and grew into a 400-foot mushroom cloud that could be seen for miles. People living nearby reported hearing loud booming before the smoke appeared.
Arriving fire crews applied foam to the flames and quickly moved the call up to a 4-alarm. Thirteen different departments responded with 62 trucks and a couple hundred firefighters.
The St. Louis City Fire Department sent chemical units to the scene, and the Metropolitan Sewer District (MSD) confirmed that chemicals leaked into the sewer system. They sent an environmental hazard team to the scene and later cleared the sewer lines.
St. Louis County police issued an evacuation order just before 4:00 p.m. to all residents within a half mile of the site. The order was lifted three hours later
It took firefighters an hour and a half to get the fire under control. It was finally extinguished around 5:15 p.m. The building was completely destroyed.
All employees were safely evacuated. One firefighter was injured and taken to an area hospital, where he is expected to recover.
Preliminary reports suggest that the fire could have started from an electrical short or static electricity.
Sources:
KMOV4
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