A fertilizer plant in a small town 20 miles north of Waco caught fire on Wednesday evening, and while firefighters were battling the blaze, the entire facility exploded, rocking the surrounding communities and causing damage to homes and buildings miles away. Early Thursday morning, authorities could only say there were definite fatalities, possibly many, and several of the firemen were reported missing after the blast. It has later been confirmed that those first-responders did perish in the explosion. The death count as of 3pm Thursday was 15, with most of those victims in or near the plant.
West, Texas, a small community, has been devastated. With the town being so rural, first-responders were not equipped to handle a tragic event of this magnitude. The initial firefighters who responded were reportedly trying to put out a fire at the facility, pouring water into a dangerous mix of toxins that resulted in the amazing power of the blast, which was felt some 70 miles away like an earthquake. Initially there were well over 100 people injured, but that number is expected to rise considerably as rescue teams continue to search for and recover survivors or victims.
This tragedy comes two days after the Boston Marathon bombings, which had dominated the news networks all week until this incident occurred. There is still the question of how the initial fire started as the facility was reportedly engulfed in flames when the initial first-responders arrived. There is speculation that they may not have realized the danger of spraying water into the burning plant.
