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Friday, 21 September, 2001, 21:20 GMT 22:20 UK
French factory blast kills 18
![]() The blast had the force of an earthquake
At least 18 people have been killed in a huge explosion at a petrochemical plant in France.
French media reported that about 650 people have been taken to hospital, of whom 49 were seriously injured.
French President Jacques Chirac and Prime Minister Lionel Jospin both visited the scene. An inquiry is under way, but authorities believe it was accidental. French radio reported that some of the workers had made a mistake while mixing chemicals. 'Plane exploding' Hundreds of residents ran into the streets in panic and police sealed off the area, fearing a cloud of fumes seen after the explosion could be poisonous. People later reported experiencing stinging eyes and throats and a strong smell of ammonia. Part of the factory was completely destroyed in the explosion.
Sandra Muller, a mother of three, told the Associated Press: "We thought it was a plane exploding. All the houses trembled." A bypass runs next to the factory, and dozens of drivers caught the full blast. A local businessman told French radio: "I was on a freeway going towards the airport and then I saw a big cloud, a big, yellow mushroom that seemed to be sulphur." Local residents reported hearing two explosions. The director of a neighbouring ammunition factory told Reuters the blast had caused a second, smaller explosion at the armaments plant but there were no injuries. An electrical store next to the AZF factory collapsed shortly after the blast, and there were reports that a Hyundai auto dealership nearby collapsed crushing the cars inside.
BBC correspondent Christopher Buckman, who was at the scene, says the explosion measured 3.2 on the Richter scale - the equivalent of a small earthquake. The factory is now little more than a twisted tangle of metal and rubble, he says, and thick black fumes are emerging from the wreckage. The explosion left a crater 50m wide.
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