Hundreds of explosions from an industrial building fire shook a Detroit suburb on Monday night.
The eruptions sent debris and canisters flying far into the air, leading authorities to warn people to remain indoors.
The fire broke out at 8:40 p.m. at Select Distributors’ warehouse at 19100 15 Mile Road, which purportedly holds nitrous oxide tanks as well as novelty goods and other stuff, according to the Detroit Free Press.
Video from our Eye in the Sky chopper of the fire in Clinton Township with continued bursts as firefighters work to extinguish the blaze.@CBSDetroit #fire #explosion #ClintonTownship #ClintonTwp #Michigan #CBSNews pic.twitter.com/pxHskFQL6K
— Ahmad Bajjey (@AhmadBajjeyWx) March 5, 2024
News helicopter footage showed a big, brilliant orange inferno with bursts of flames that resembled explosions.
According to WXYZ, hundreds of minor explosions occurred within the structure when canisters exploded and shot out of it. One of the canisters went through the windshield of a fire vehicle, striking a fireman.
According to a Clinton Township Police Department post on Facebook, a bystander received injuries as a result of the event and was brought to a nearby hospital.
Both the Clinton Township Police Department and the Clinton Township Fire Department requested assistance from local police and fire departments, as well as the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives, citing the business’s history of stocking combustible materials.
More video of the blaze in Michigan. pic.twitter.com/n71u5yPxD0
— ChatterBoxMuse ❂ (@ChatterBox_Muse) March 5, 2024
Police reported that as first responders got on the site, they saw bursting debris flying in all directions from the structure, with some landing nearly a mile away. They immediately formed a security barrier and began evacuating people and businesses.
“We can not stress enough the danger that is happening right now,” the police said. “Please, please, please stay inside and out of the vicinity.”
After 11 p.m., he informed the news outlet that the fire had been put out.
“Their concern right now is — obviously they’re taming the fire, but now, what’s going on with that air quality?” Hackel said. “We have a HAZMAT unit that’s out trying to test the air quality, so we can get further updates.”
He stated that preliminary data from air quality studies revealed that there was smoke but nothing dangerous. According to him, the wind was driving smoke westerly and semi-northerly, therefore testing took place largely west of Groesbeck.
Joleen Vultaggio, a resident of Sterling Heights, claimed she could hear the explosions from eight miles away.
“It just freaked me out because it wasn’t like one boom, it was continuous and it was very intense,” she said, as reported by the AP.
Crews stayed on scene until early Tuesday morning, cleaning debris from the street and nearby parking lots. It is unclear what set off the explosions.
