Rt. Local outlet WOWK reported that several schools in the area also announced closures for Wednesday, following the explosion. The agreement includes a payment in lieu of taxes, in which Torch Clean Energy agreed to make significant yearly payments based on the number of megawatts generated. The Project will repurpose a former explosives manufacturing site, and with approximately $100 million invested will be one of the nations largest brownfield renewable energy projects. He told TV stations, right now we feel like everything is in pretty good shape.". The location was a DuPont facility for many years in an area commonly referred to as the Chemical Valley not far from West Virginias capital. The Rush to Green Could Leave Us in the Dark. John was the sole bread winner for his family.. Carper said at first they believed there was a barge accident, but they soon realized it was an incident at the plant. Gayle and I, like all West Virginians, will keep Johns loved ones in our prayers and will continue to pray for the speedy recovery of the three others injured in last nights explosion.. Belle, West Virginia Explosion Scanner Audio - YouTube There are about 200 employees at the Belle location. Senator says it's time to get construction started. Pittsburgh woman missing for 31 years found alive in Puerto Rico, School shooting survivor has emotional audition on "American Idol". There was a shelter in place for a two-mile radius late Tuesday night into Wednesday morning, according to dispatchers. Optima Belle LLC said that three chemical operators, including the man who died, were in the building when the incident at its chemical plant occurred. Belle Mayor David Fletcher, who also is a volunteer firefighter, said the blaze was extinguished before midnight. Steam billows from cooling towers at a power plant near the Kanawha River in West Virginia. The cause of the explosion is under investigation. Categories. The Rush to Green Could Leave Us in the Dark, All Belle Chemical Company employees have been accounted for and safely evacuated from the premises. It shook people's houses on both sides of the river.". Jim Justice initially said at least four people were hurt in the explosion. Patrol Officer Cassie Marie Johnson Memorial Act creates a new criminal charge. The town of Nitro, 14 miles downriver from Charleston, is named for gunpowder manufactured there in 1917 and 1918. As coal is prepared for shipment, it is washed with chemicals, including a cleanser known as crude MCHM, which is at the heart of last week's accident. Jim Justice tweeted that he has been briefed and that he and his wife were praying for the safety of everyone involved.Sen. The fire was significant, Carper said. The shelter in place was lifted about 2:30 Wednesday morning. Chemours formed as a spinoff from DuPont in 2015. Heres the technology that helped scientists find itand what it may have been used for. Stay up to date with what you want to know. 2. Chlorine itself is not flammable, but it can react explosively or form explosive compounds with other chemicals such as turpentine and ammonia, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. "John was beloved by many in his community and his church," the told the station. Last week's spill is believed to be West Virginia's first chemical accident involving contamination of a large municipal system, and Governor Earl Ray Tomblin has warned out-of-town media against misattributing blame. That includes Carver Career Center, Riverside High School, DuPont Middle, East Bank Middle, Cedar Grove middle and elementary, plus local elementary schools Belle, Chesapeake, Malden, Marmet, Mary Ingles, Midland Trail, Pratt and Sharon Dawes. December 9, 2020 / 9:45 AM The toxic wastewater produced in the cleansing process, known as coal slurry, is either injected into the grounda moratorium bans that for now, says Ohio Valley Environmental Coalition's Stockmanor is stored in impoundment ponds, or sludge "lakes" behind earthen dams.