One person was killed and 16 others were injured, two of them seriously, and four others were missing, according to the Rheinische Post.
The fire has been extinguished, but dense black smoke is still emerging from the site of the explosion, where, as Bild notes, waste is incinerated, including hazardous toxic waste.
The cloud that has been created is directed, according to the control center of the Rhineland-Bergis region, to the areas of Bursaid and Vermelskirchen, while the smell is felt as far as Zollingen and Wuppertal.
RAW: A huge explosion at a chemical park in the western German city of Leverkusen sent a column of black smoke into the air, with officials urging residents to shelter indoors and close their windows. pic.twitter.com/jc2ehvL9T0
– DW News (@dwnews) July 27, 2021
A few minutes after the explosion, the “NINA” application was activated, through which, with a message of “extreme danger”, the residents were informed to stay indoors and to keep doors and windows closed.
Koelner Stadtanzeiger, meanwhile, reports that since the end of last week, construction companies have been removing bulky waste from the recent floods in western Germany and transporting it to the Currenta plant for sorting and incineration.
Firefighters and pollution detection trucks rushed to the spot. According to the managers of the Chempark facility, the cause of the explosion is unclear.
To explode the explosion in the Chempark north of Leverkusen with the rating and fireworks in the Großesinsatz. Es kommt zu massiven Verkehrsbehinderungen dür Autobahnsperrungen. https://t.co/WbnXDDIBDj
– DER SPIEGEL (@derspiegel) July 27, 2021
Source: cnn.gr
Germany: Seriously injured and missing from explosion at factory in Leverkusen (video)
