At least seven hurt in Florida gas plant blast

Firefighters prepare to put out a container of burning caps as thousands of exploded propane cylinders litter the storage yard of a propane plant following massive explosions overnight in the plant’s yard in Tavares , Florida, on Monday.

AFP/Orlando

A series of explosions shook a gas plant in central Florida, injuring at least seven people and prompting evacuations of nearby neighbourhoods, news reports said yesterday.

The Orlando Sentinel newspaper, citing local officials, wrote that 24 people were working at the Blue Rhino factory when the explosions occurred late Monday.

Authorities, who at first said as many as 15 workers were missing, said later that they had all been accounted for.

The blasts set off a huge fire, which firefighters contained early yesterday.

Some nearby areas were evacuated, but residents were later allowed to return home, the Sentinel reported.

The daily wrote that the first explosions before midnight blew the roof off the plant, and were followed by more blasts early yesterday.

Residents reported seeing a “giant fireball” in the sky.

Several injured people were taken to hospitals in Orlando and nearby areas.