Two workers injured in explosion, fire at chemical plant in East St. Louis
Two workers were injured at a chemical plant that caught fire in East St. Louis on Sunday night.
“One male was extremely hurt. I got reports back he had chemical burns over 45-60 percent of his body,” said George McClellan, assistant chief of the East St. Louis Fire Department.
McClellan did not have information on the second man’s injuries. He said the men were between 28-35 years old.
“Both were taken to an area hospital,” McClellan said.
The chemical plant - owned by Allnex USA Inc. - is shut down as investigators from OSHA conduct an investigation, McClellan said.
Allnex, which merged with Nuplex in 2016, produces adhesives, sealants and specialty coatings. It is located in the 2900 block of Missouri Avenue.
An explosion at the plant was reported between 9:45 p.m. and 10 p.m. Sunday, McClellan said.
At the scene, firefighters learned “a chemical tank inside of the building was on fire at the time,” McClellan said.
“We only knew the chemical was water solvent. The sprinkler system was working. Initially the fire was not where the sprinkler system was located. We had to use a master stream (heavy volumes of water) to suppress the fire,” McClellan said.
Firefighters were on the scene until around 2 a.m.
Firefighters from Fairmont City and Cahokia Heights also responded to the fire, McClellan said.
This story was originally published July 11, 2022 at 8:16 AM.
