Wood pellet plant blast injures four in US
07 September 2021
An explosion at a wood pellet manufacturer in the state of Georgia, US injured four people on September 2. The incident happened at a plant belonging to Hazlehurst Wood Pellets near the town of Hazlehurst. Two of the injured were airlifted to hospital.
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All four of the injured were employees of Hazlehurst Wood Pellets. Two suffered extensive burns according to local officials and required an airlift to hospital, while the other two injuries were relatively minor. The Jeff Davis County Sheriff’s Office said that the incident occurred around 16:30 local time and that fire officials were also called to the scene.
The local fire chief told local news outlets that the cause of the blast is still unknown, however it is likely that some wood pellets overheated and the product on it ignited. Fire crews remained at the site until the following day in order to monitor for hot spots and prevent any reignition.
Fire Chief Wasdin added that firefighters were able to contain the resulting fire because Hazlehurst Wood Pellets had invested in a new suppression system just last year. Wasdin added that the system did what it was supposed to and therefore saved lives of both employees and firefighters.