A massive explosion and fire occurred on the 11th at a chemical plant near Chicago, Illinois.
According to the fire department, at around 9:00 am on the same day, an explosion sounded, and flames spread, and black smoke rose from the facilities of Carus Chemical LLC, a chemical manufacturer in LaSalle, a small city about 130 km southwest of Chicago.
CBS said, “The fire started near the factory’s shipping facility.”
LaSalle Fire Department said the fire was extinguished around noon, saying, “The scale of the fire was so great that we had to call for help from the local fire department.”
“The factory building where the accident occurred was badly damaged, but there are no reports of injuries,” said fire chief Jerry Janick.
He said, “In preparation for an accident, we are issuing a ‘no movement order’ near the site and installing additional equipment for final evolution work and investigation.”
The police said that a large amount of green oxidizing agent flowed at the scene of the fire, and said, “Never touch it, and if necessary, it can be deactivated by mixing water, hydrogen peroxide, and vinegar in a 1:1:1 ratio.”
Carus, a 108-year-old family-run business based in Peru-La Salle, Illinois, is known as a small and medium-sized business with 375 employees and annual sales of 73 million dollars (approximately 90 billion won).
The company introduces itself on its website as “producing high-quality products that help solve environmental problems. It provides innovative solutions for water supply, wastewater, industrial applications, air purification, and soil improvement.”
Meanwhile, the Illinois branch of the Federal Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) said it was “monitoring the status of the accident and will soon conduct an on-site investigation.”