19 Dead or Missing After Massive Explosion at Tennessee Military Explosives Plant

New York – At least 19 people are dead or missing following a powerful explosion that destroyed a building at a military explosives manufacturing facility in the US state of Tennessee, local officials confirmed on Friday.

Humphreys County Sheriff Chris Davis described the aftermath as “one of the most devastating” scenes he had ever witnessed. “I can tell you that we're missing 19 souls,” Davis said at a press briefing, adding that debris from the blast spread across half a square mile.

“There’s nothing to describe — it’s gone,” he said, noting that families of those missing are “grieving and going through a gauntlet of emotion.”

The explosion occurred around 7:45 a.m. local time (12:45 GMT) at Accurate Energetic Systems, LLC, a company located southwest of Nashville that manufactures military-grade explosives.

Emergency crews from multiple agencies, including the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF), Homeland Security, and the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation, have responded to the site. However, rescue operations are proceeding cautiously due to fears of secondary explosions.

Hickman County Mayor Jim Bates told ABC News earlier that at least 13 people were unaccounted for, while local authorities later confirmed a higher casualty figure as investigations continued.

David Stewart of Hickman County Emergency Services told CNN that officials have not yet been able to fully assess the extent of the damage or injuries due to safety concerns at the site.

Sheriff Davis cautioned that the investigation could take considerable time as state and federal teams collaborate to determine the cause of the explosion and verify the status of missing personnel.

With inputs from IANS