KANAWHA COUNTY, W.Va. (WSAZ) West Virginia American Water says customers are not impacted by the chemical plant explosion. Two of the people transported were from inside the plant. Last week's spill is believed to be West Virginia's first chemical accident involving contamination of a large municipal system, and Governor Earl Ray Tomblin has warned out-of-town media against misattributing blame. Pittsburgh woman missing for 31 years found alive in Puerto Rico, School shooting survivor has emotional audition on "American Idol". The explosion occurred near the Chemours plant in Belle just after 10 p.m. It happened around 10 p.m. Tuesday at the Optima Chemicals Company along W. Dupont. Chemours formed as a spinoff from DuPont in 2015. The injured people included two workers and one person hit by debris, Kanawha County Commissioner Kent Carper told WCHS-TV. A 2-mile radius was ordered to shelter in place around the Chemours chemical complex in Belle, WV, WOWK-TV reported. The chemical industry followed early salt miners and then the kings of coal to West Virginia in the late 1700s. Chemical incident at Chemours plant in Belle. West Virginia American Waters Kanawha Valley water treatment plant is located along the Elk River, which is a separate source water supply from the chemical plant. Carper said he hopes the shelter-in-place is lifted soon, but for now it is best to stay put and stay inside their homes for the safety of their families. Four injured after explosion, fire at W.Va. chemical plant. All Belle Chemical Company units have been shut down. Updated What happened was a tragedy. Tina and her children are surrounded by family and friends in this great time of need. "The explosion was massive. The site of the former DuPont Potomac River Works explosives manufacturing facility in Berkeley County will be the future home of a $100 million solar electricity production facility. As of just before 2 a.m. Wednesday, the commission reported the fire was still burning at the plant. The explosion happened about 10 p.m. at an area along the Kanawha River about 10 miles east of Charleston. Correction: A previous version of this story misidentified the chemical plant where the explosion took place. "As far as I know, there was no coal company within miles.". Cathy and I are praying for the safety of all involved.. Sign up for notifications from Insider! Visit Insider's homepage for more stories. BELLE, W.Va. An explosion at a West Virginia chemical plant on Wednesday night prompted authorities to order residents within 2 miles of the plant to remain indoors. Patrol Officer Cassie Marie Johnson Memorial Act creates a new criminal charge. Governor Justice stated a little after 11 p.m. that he has been monitoring the situation. WSAZ has been told the explosion happened at a tenant company that operates at Chemours called Optima. Patrol Officer Cassie Marie Johnson Memorial Act creates a new criminal charge. The order was lifted around 2:30 a.m. The cause of the explosion is under investigation. Four injuries were reported, and area schools were closing Wednesday as a precaution. The explosion took place at the Optima Belle Chemical plant at around 10 p.m. Tuesday, when a 1,200-gallon metal dryer became over-pressurized during a chemical product drying operation, a news. Second, a benefit account for the family has been established with City National Bank. Explosion at the Chemours Plant. Hey Kanawha County. The Bedington Energy Facility will stand on the site of a former industrial facility that was previously designated as a Brownfield site by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency due to potential contamination from the DuPont operations. Copyright 2020 WSAZ. Carper also told local WCHS reporter Whitney Wetzel that the incident involved chlorinated dry bleach and methanol. Maintenance staff were troubleshooting it when the incident took place. The groundbreaking promise of cellular housekeeping. pic.twitter.com/TtXX20bu6q. And though some of West Virginia's chemical manufacturers have shifted to Calgary's gas fields and to the oil-rich Gulf Coast in recent years, the discovery of the Marcellus Shalewhich extends throughout much of the eastern United States and is touted as the largest natural gas field in the worldhas raised hopes of a rebirth of Chemical Valley. ET, WCHS reported. Four people were reported injured initially, but Kanawha County Commissioner Kent Carper said one person later died. One person is dead and two were left injured after a fire at a chemical plant in Belle, West Virginia, according to Optima Belle Chemical, the tenant of the site. Audio. Access your favorite topics in a personalized feed while you're on the go. December 9, 2020 / 9:45 AM The roughly 5,000-year-old human remains were found in graves from the Yamnaya culture, and the discovery may partially explain their rapid expansion throughout Europe. What if we could clean them out? MARTINSBURG, W.Va. The site of the former DuPont Potomac River Works explosives manufacturing facility in Berkeley County will be the future home of a $100 million solar electricity production facility. Two of the people transported were from inside the plant. Chemours released the following statement: An incident at one of the tenant companies at the Chemours site in Belle, West Virginia has resulted in a fire. Copyright 1996-2015 National Geographic SocietyCopyright 2015-2023 National Geographic Partners, LLC. All Belle Chemical Company employees have been accounted for and safely evacuated from the premises. The Associated Press contributed to this report. Joe Manchin, D-West Virginia, also tweeted his concern.School closings for Wednesday were announced by the county.Chemours formed as a spinoff from DuPont in 2015. "The fire was significant," Carper told local outlet MetroNews. KANAWHA COUNTY, W.Va. (WSAZ) West Virginia American Water says customers are not impacted by the chemical plant explosion. We are actively monitoring the situation, the release said. John was beloved by many in his community and his church. Accidents and Explosions By the time of the Monsanto settlement,. Nitro has been back in the news more recently. The town of Nitro, 14 miles downriver from Charleston, is named for gunpowder manufactured there in 1917 and 1918. Officials let the fire continue to burn off until just after midnight when it was extinguished, Justice said. KANAWHA COUNTY, W.Va. (WSAZ) - U.S. The number to reach it for non-emergency calls related to the incident is 304-746-8828. He said they do not believe any chemicals got into the Kanawha River. Top editors give you the stories you want delivered right to your inbox each weekday. Gov. Jim Justice said in a tweet that he was aware of the situation. "Gayle and I send our thoughts and prayers to John Gillenwaters family, friends, and loved ones, especially his wife Tina and their children," Manchin said in a statement. On December 12, 2020, the Gazette-Mail reported an explosion at a chemical plant in Belle, West Virginia. Kanawha County Emergency Management Director, CW Sigman, tells WSAZ.com chlorine and methanol were involved in the explosion. According to emergency officials, the explosion occurred at 8:40 a.m. in a furnace. KANAWHA COUNTY, W.Va. (WSAZ) A 2-mile radius shelter-in-place is in effect late Tuesday night into Wednesday morning after an explosion at the Chemours plant along West Dupont Avenue in Belle, Metro 911 dispatchers say. Rt. Not in this state.". These animals can sniff it out. That includes Carver Career Center, Riverside High School, DuPont Middle, East Bank Middle, Cedar Grove middle and elementary, plus local elementary schools Belle, Chesapeake, Malden, Marmet, Mary Ingles, Midland Trail, Pratt and Sharon Dawes. An explosion that injured four people at a West Virginia chemical plant and shook surrounding homes prompted authorities to impose a shelter-in-place order. The incident was reported around 10 p.m. Aaron Spencer captured the following drone footage of fire after the explosion: Dispatchers said there was some type of explosion, but the cause is unknown at this time. It was at Optima Belle Chemical, a tenant of the Chemours Company Plant site. KANAWHA COUNTY, W.Va. (WSAZ) A shelter-in-place order has been lifted, nearly four and a half hours after an explosion at the Chemours plant along W. Dupont Ave. in Belle. All Belle Chemical Company units have been shut down. There are about 200 employees at the Belle location. The life expectancy of the solar panels is more than 35 years. Manchin visits Milton, discusses new federal funding for floodwall project. A West Virginia chemical facility erupted into flames after an explosion Tuesday night, killing one person and leading to a 2-mile shelter in place order for area residents before the fire was under control and the order was lifted, officials said. The Senate bill shrinks the copay cap from $100 to $35. Senator says it's time to get construction started. The family is devastated over the loss of their husband, father and friend John Gillenwater. The Project will be a beacon for leading companies that are seeking to purchase clean energy and open operations in Berkeley County and West Virginia.. Browse By. Please be respectful of copyright. It shook people's houses on both sides of the river.". It includes all of Belle, Marmet, Chesapeake and Chelyan. The U.S. Chemical Safety Board (CSB) today released its final report on a series of three accidents that occurred over a 33-hour period on January 22 and 23, 2010, at the DuPont Corporation's Belle, West Virginia, chemical manufacturing plant -. The other two were evaluated at a hospital and have been released. Site responders are working to contain the fire. CNN Sans & 2016 Cable News Network. The explosion involved chlorinated dry bleach and methanol, Kanawha County Commissioner Kent Carper told the. "Welcome to our world," says Vivian Stockman, 52, a longtime resident of rural Roane County, north of Charleston, the state capital, and an activist with the Ohio Valley Environmental Coalition. First, the family covets your prayers. Carper told WCHS that one individual was taken to CAMC General Hospital by ambulance and another individual drove themselves to Montgomery General Hospital. appreciated. The. Appalachian Power and Mon Power report approximately 60,000 customers without service Saturday morning. Can we bring a species back from the brink? ET, WCHS reported. House approves bill named after fallen Charleston police officer. He said they do not believe any chemicals got into the Kanawha River. Early Wednesday morning, the. The shelter in place was lifted about 2:30 Wednesday morning. Example video title will go here for this video. Four people in all were hurt in the blast, which happened just after 10 p.m. at Optima Chemicals a tenant on the site of the Chemours plant in Belle, officials said. A National Geographic team has made the first ascent of the remote Mount Michael, looking for a lava lake in the volcanos crater. It happened around 10 p.m. Tuesday at the . Carper also says it does not appear any chemicals got into the Kanawha River. Do Not Sell My Personal Information The safety board returned to West Virginia in 2010, after an accidental release of toxic gas at the DuPont plant in Belle killed one worker there, and again urged new safety oversight. Officials believe the explosion involved chlorinated dry bleach and methanol, Kanawha County Commissioner Kent Carper told WCHS-TV. Heres the technology that helped scientists find itand what it may have been used for. After the 2008 explosion at Bayer CropScience, the federal Chemical Safety Board recommended new state and federal safety regulations. Pasco sheriff: 3 people, including a 6-year-old girl, shot in the head during home invasion, Missing child alert canceled for Miami 15-year-old, 10 Weather: Warm weekend, isolated rain chances, Windy conditions ahead of chance of rain this weekend, Police: 4 killed after explosion at UK waste water plant, US charities raise millions in wake of Beirut port blast. The county commission said that the shelter-in-place order covers all of Belle, as well as the communities Marmet, Chesapeake and Chelyan.tags :- wsaz, dupont plant wv, wchs, dupont explosion, dupont, belle wv, dupont plant explosion, dupont plant, wsaz news, charleston wv news, chemours belle wv, wowk, charleston wv, wchs news, chemours, dupont plant belle wv, chemical plant explosion, belle west virginia, dupont plant west virginia, chlorine gas, wv news, dupont charleston wv, wchstv shelter in place charleston wv, kanawha countyCopyright Disclaimer Under Section 107 of the Copyright Act 1976, allowance is made for \"fair use\" for purposes such as criticism, comment, news reporting, teaching, scholarship, and research. The location was a DuPont facility for many years in an area commonly referred to as the Chemical Valley not far from West Virginias capital. Please be careful everyone! CW Sigman, the Kanawha County Emergency Management Director, tells WSAZ chlorine and methanol were included in the explosion. Its still unclear what they produce at the plant. There was a shelter in place for a two-mile radius late Tuesday night into Wednesday morning, according to dispatchers. James Mason, whos with KCEAA, said they have their mass causality teams and mass triage teams ready as a precautionary measure. She's president of People Concerned About Chemical Safety, which pressed West Virginia lawmakers in 2009 to pass legislation modeled on a California industrial safety program that Nye says has minimized industrial accidents there. The water company says customers will not see any changes to their water services. The explosion sent large chunks of metal through the air. One of Earth's loneliest volcanoes holds an extraordinary secret. Senator says it's time to get construction started. The call came in around 10 p.m. Tuesday, December 8, 2020. A homeowner in Belle shared this video shot Tuesday night during the explosion at the Chemours plant in Kanawha County. KANAWHA COUNTY, W.Va. (WSAZ) A 2-mile radius shelter-in-place is in effect late Tuesday night into Wednesday morning after an explosion at along the Optima Chemicals Company West Dupont Avenue in Belle, Metro 911 dispatchers say. The explosion lit up the night sky in eastern Kanawha County. It includes all of Belle, Marmet, Chesapeake and Chelyan. Copyright 2023 West Virginia MetroNews Network. Then, in 2008, after the plant was bought by Bayer CropScience, an explosion killed two workers. The explosion sent large chunks of metal through the air. Kanawha County Commissioner Kent Carper told a local radio program Wednesday morning that there was a "massive explosion" at the site that sent metal debris onto an interstate and across the river. (WSAZ) - West Virginia American Water says customers are not impacted by the chemical plant explosion. pic.twitter.com/TtXX20bu6q, Chris Kessell (@THEChrisKessell) December 9, 2020. Which travel companies promote harmful wildlife activities? WSAZ-TV reports three people were taken to the hospital and a fourth transported themselves to get treatment. Copyright 2023 CBS Interactive Inc. All rights reserved. The plant is along the Kanawha River in eastern Kanawha County.Belle, with a population of around 1,100, is southeast of Charleston. The Belle Chemical Company that oversees the chemical operations at the site said in a 1:30 a.m. news release the explosion occurred at the site but was not related to chemical company operations. It happened around 10 p.m. Tuesday at the Chemours plant along W. Dupont Ave. in Belle. Two of the injured were from inside the plant. According to the company, no changes have occurred in the finished water quality leaving the companys water treatment plants and no drinking water advisories have been issued. Officials believe the explosion involved chlorinated dry bleach and methanol, Carper said. Your effort and contribution in providing this feedback is much Follow Laura Parker on Twitter and Facebook. / CBS/AP. It is heartbreaking to lose a fellow West Virginian, especially so close to the holidays. How did this mountain lion reach an uninhabited island? Firetrucks responding to plant. All rights reserved. Aerial drone footage of explosion at Chemours plant in Kanawha County (courtesy of Aaron Spencer). Road closures, shelter-in-place in effect after chemical plant explosion in Kanawha Valley, Go Fund Me started for Rockingham County deputy in need of emergency heart surgery, High School Basketball Scoreboard: State Quarterfinals, JMU womens basketball moves past Marshall 62-43, advances to Sun Belt semifinal, COVID was a huge boom for us; Shenandoah National Park official talks about how they are moving forward, Charlie Obaugh RV & Outdoor Student Athlete of the Week. Its plant in Belle is located about 15 minutes south of Charleston. But the measures found little support in the capitol in Charleston. All we can tell you is if you live in that area shelter in place, Kanawha County Commissioner Kent Carper told MetroNews a few minutes after the explosion was first reported. 2020 CBS Interactive Inc. All Rights Reserved. According to the Kanawha County Commission, the Kanawha County Emergency Operations Center has been activated. Fair use is a use permitted by copyright statute that might otherwise be infringing. Residents who lived within a two-mile radius of the Chemours plant in Belle, West Virginia, were ordered to shelter in place following a "chemical incident and explosion," Kanawha County officials said. This is a developing story. The Berkeley County Council announced Thursday that Torch Clean Energy, based in Colorado, is leading one of West Virginias first utility-scale solar projects. NOW WATCH: We tried Plant Power, the vegan fast-food chain taking over the West Coast, Visit Insider's homepage for more stories. There are reports of injuries but no specific details. Animation of April 26, 2018, Explosion and Fire at the Husky Energy Refinery in Superior . John was beloved by many in his community and his church, the family said in a statement. Unauthorized use is prohibited. Do Not Sell My Personal Information By clicking Sign up, you agree to receive marketing emails from Insider Why wetlands are so critical for life on Earth, Rest in compost? SHELTER IN PLACE IS IN EFFECT. Chlorine itself is not flammable, but it can react explosively or form explosive compounds with other chemicals such as turpentine and ammonia, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. As of just before 2 a.m. Wednesday, the commission reported the fire was still burning at the plant. An explosion that injured four people at a West Virginia chemical plant and shook surrounding homes prompted authorities to impose a shelter-in-place order. The area is the location of theformer DuPont chemical plant. In 2011, after a nearly 30-year court battle with residents of Institute, Bayer CropScience dropped plans to resume production of MIC, according to the Associated Press, and announced it would dismantle the production unit. A chemical incident and explosion at a plant in Belle, West Virginia, resulted in a shelter-in-place order for residents within a two-mile radius on Tuesday. It happened around 10 p.m. Tuesday at the Chemours plant along W. Dupont Ave. in Belle. Road closures, shelter-in-place in effect after chemical plant explosion in Kanawha Valley, Sheriff releases name after body found in Mason County, Wind spreads flames across several properties, Man dies in law enforcement custody; death investigation underway, Herd faithful showing up in Pensacola for the Sun Belt Conference Tournament. It directed questions to another company that did not immediately return a voice message.Aerial video posted to social media captured images of the fire burning.The shelter-in-place remained in effect early Wednesday. It is unclear if the furnace was used to heat the building or products . U.S. 60 was shut down from Campbells Creek to the Chelyan Bridge. Imagesposted on Twitter showed the fire from across the Kanawha River. CW Sigman, the Kanawha County Emergency Management Director, tells WSAZ chlorine and methanol were included in the explosion. Long COVID patients turn to unproven treatments, Why evenings can be harder on people with dementia, This disease often goes under-diagnosedunless youre white, This sacred site could be Georgias first national park, See glow-in-the-dark mushrooms in Brazils other rainforest, 9 things to know about Holi, Indias most colorful festival, Anyone can discover a fossil on this beach. RELATED: Police: 4 killed after explosion at UK waste water plant, RELATED: US charities raise millions in wake of Beirut port blast. Can we bring a species back from the brink?, Video Story, Copyright 1996-2015 National Geographic Society, Copyright 2015-2023 National Geographic Partners, LLC. It happened. Senator Joe Manchin (D-WV) released a statement on John Gillenwater, the man who was killed at the Optima Chemical facility explosion last night in Belle. Shelter in place up within two miles of Belle. But the real buildup came with World War I and the demand for explosives and other chemical products. 2023 Cable News Network. House approves bill named after fallen Charleston police officer. The cause of the explosion is under investigation. We encourage those who would like to show support for Tina and the family during this time to donate by contacting any local branch referencing the benefit account for John Gillenwater.. Four people have reportedly been injured after an explosion at a chemical plant in West Virginia. It happened Tuesday night at the Chemours property site in Belle. "We just live with it until the next thing happens and then we rehash it all over again," Nye said. His family is "devastated over the loss of their husband, father and friend," according to NBC affiliate WSAZ of Huntington. The town of Belle has about 1,100 residents. The project proposes turning 750 acres of land with limited potential use into what the company says will be a 100-megawatt solar array that can power thousands of homes and businesses. One person was severely injured. Copyright 2023 West Virginia MetroNews Network. What is wind chill, and how does it affect your body? As fire lit up the night sky, the Kanawha County Sheriffs Department and State Police were controlling traffic at the roads around the plant. One was a driver who was injured by debris from the explosion that struck their vehicle.