There are no survivors in explosion at Tennessee explosives factory, sheriff says

McEWEN, Tenn. (AP) — The explosion in rural Tennessee that destroyed an explosives factory and was felt for miles around left no survivors, authorities said Saturday.

The total number of deaths is unclear, as is the cause of Friday’s explosion. Over the weekend, the devastation became visible, with authorities saying they had found no survivors.

“There’s a whole gauntlet of emotions there,” Humphreys County Sheriff Chris Davis said at a news conference, pausing to clear his throat before asking in a trembling voice for prayers for the victims’ families.

“We have not recovered any survivors,” he added.

State authorities called in a “rapid DNA” team to help identify the remains of those found at the site. The explosion left a smoldering wreck of twisted metal and charred vehicles at the Accurate Energetic Systems factory, which supplies and studies explosives for the military.

Davis said about 300 responders are working in a “slow, methodical way” to deal with explosive materials that have been damaged and remain volatile. An ambulance and a helicopter used for air evacuations were mobilized to ensure the safety of first responders.

“It’s not like working on an accident. It’s not like working on a tornado. We’re dealing with explosions. And I would say right now we’re dealing with remnants,” he said.

Guy McCormick, a supervisory special agent with the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, said explosives specialists and bomb technicians were trying to secure the area before domestic ATF investigators arrived. He added that the nature of the scene could change due to the heat and pressure caused by the explosion.

Davis said it could be days, weeks or even months before foul play is ruled out.

The site is located in a heavily forested area of ​​middle Tennessee, between the economically vital Tennessee River to the west and the bustling metropolis of Nashville to the east. Modest homes dot the wooded landscape, residences belonging to “good old country folk,” as local resident Terry Bagsby put it.

“A lot of sorrow”

Near the site, someone had made a sign reading “Pray for AES Families” and several vigils were planned for Saturday, in addition to a candlelight rally Friday evening.

Bagsby, 68, is retired but helps run the register at a gas station near the site. He said members of the close-knit community are “very, very sad.”

He said he knew people who worked at the site who were missing.

“I don’t know how to explain it. … Just a lot of grief.”

The company’s website says it processes explosives and munitions in an eight-building facility that sprawls across forested hills in the Bucksnort area, about 60 miles (97 kilometers) southwest of Nashville. It was not immediately clear how many people work at the factory or how many were present when the explosion occurred.

Accurate Energetic Systems, based in nearby McEwen, said in a social media post Friday that its “thoughts and prayers” were with the affected families and community.

“We express our gratitude to all first responders who continue to work tirelessly under difficult conditions,” the message said.

An explosion wakes residents from their sleep

The company has won numerous military contracts, largely with the U.S. Army and Navy, to supply different types of munitions and explosives, according to public records. Products range from bulk explosives to landmines and small breach charges, including C4.

When the explosion occurred, residents of Lobelville, a 20-minute drive from the scene, reported feeling their homes shake, and some people filmed the loud noise of the explosion on their home cameras.

The explosion woke Gentry Stover from his sleep.

“I thought the house had collapsed with me inside,” he told the Associated Press. “I live very close to Accurate and I realized about 30 seconds after waking up that this must be it.”

Tennessee Governor Bill Lee said on social platform X that he was monitoring the situation and asked “Tennessees to join us in prayer for the families affected by this tragic incident.”

A small group gathered for a vigil Friday evening in a nearby park, holding candles as they prayed for the missing and their families and sang “Amazing Grace.”

The United States has a long history of fatal workplace accidents, including the Monongah coal mine explosion that killed 362 men and boys in West Virginia in 1907. Several high-profile industrial accidents in the 1960s led President Richard Nixon to sign legislation creating the Occupational Safety and Health Administration the following year.

In 2019, Accurate Energetic Systems faced several small fines from the U.S. Department of Labor for violating policies intended to protect workers from exposure to hazardous chemicals, radiation and other irritants, according to OSHA citations.

In 2014, an explosion occurred at another munitions facility in the same small community, killing one person and injuring at least three others.

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Associated Press writers Mike Catalini in Morrisville, Pa.; Sarah Brumfield, in Cockeysville, Maryland; Hannah Schoenbaum, in Salt Lake City; Kathy McCormack in Concord, New Hampshire; Kimberlee Kruesi in Providence, Rhode Island; and Hallie Golden in Seattle contributed to this report.