UP IN SMOKE

Terrifying Footage Shows Huge Texas Chemical Plant Explosion

Everyone within a half mile of the plant has been ordered to evacuate, and windows miles away were blown out.

A massive explosion erupted from an east Texas chemical plant early Wednesday morning, blowing out windows on homes several miles away. The explosion is believed to have originated at a plant in Port Neches, near the Louisiana border, shortly after midnight local time. The Nederland Volunteer Fire Department said on its Facebook page everyone within a half mile of the plant needed to evacuate, and that could be expanded. Terrifying footage from the scene shows the moment flames are sent into the sky. At least two people were taken to hospitals, but it’s not known how seriously they were injured, according to the Jefferson County Sheriff’s Office. The facility produces butadiene, a colorless gas, and raffinate, a fuel product.