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Spanish chemical plant explosion kills man 3km away | |
(about 13 hours later) | |
Two people were killed and eight others injured following an explosion at a chemical plant in Spain's autonomous Catalonia region, officials say. | |
One of those killed suffered a fatal injury when an apartment block located about 3km (two miles) away partially collapsed, Spanish media report. | |
Officials say Tuesday's blast south of Tarragona was probably sparked by a chemical accident. | |
Authorities said that no toxic substances were released. | |
Nearby residents were, however, initially urged to stay indoors after the explosion set off a huge fire. | |
Dozens of firefighters worked through the night and into Wednesday to tackle the blaze at the Industrias Químicas del Óxido de Etileno plant. | |
A reporter for Spanish public broadcaster RTVE, Jesús Navarro, tweeted an image showing a mangled structure at the factory site. | |
Water was sprayed over tanks containing chemicals to keep them cool. | |
The factory produces chemicals such as ethylene oxide - which can be used to make antifreeze, pesticides and to sterilise hospital equipment - and propylene oxide, which is used to make plastics. Both are extremely flammable. | |
The explosion, which firefighters said appeared to have occurred in one of the plant's reactors, happened at about 18:40 local time (17:40 GMT) in La Canonja municipality. | |
The person killed in his apartment was named in local media only as Sergio. | |
Neighbours in the Plaça García Lorca housing estate in Torreforta described seeing "a ball of fire" at the time of the incident. | |
Local resident Antonia Mora told Spanish newspaper El Pais "it was like a bomb". | |
Witnesses described a "large metal" object hitting the building. Images of the apartment block showed damage to the building's exterior. | |
Rescue teams with search dogs found the body of the second victim, a senior staff member at the factory, in the early hours of Wednesday. The search had been called off overnight due to poor visibility and dangerous conditions. | |
At least two people are reported to have suffered serious burns, Catalonia's civil protection service said. | |
Late on Tuesday Catalan leader Quim Torra told reporters: "Now we can send a message of calm and confidence to people. There is no toxicity and therefore people can carry on with their lives as normal." | Late on Tuesday Catalan leader Quim Torra told reporters: "Now we can send a message of calm and confidence to people. There is no toxicity and therefore people can carry on with their lives as normal." |
Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez later offered support to Catalan authorities in dealing with the accident. | |
Roads and public transport systems in the area that were closed as a precaution were reopened on Wednesday. |