Explosion in Bitterfeld: Man dies in industrial accident in chemical park

Bitterfeld (Saxony-Anhalt) – Terrible industrial accident at the Bitterfeld Chemical Park: A worker died in an explosion there on Wednesday morning.

“At around 11 a.m. there was an explosion on the premises of a recycling company located in the chemical park, resulting in a fire,” said fire department spokesman Tobias Meier. The black cloud of smoke could be seen for miles.

A police spokesman told BILD: “One person died in the incident.”

Explosion caused by gas cylinder

“The excavator of a metalworking company in Antoinettenstrasse in Bitterfeld hit a compressed gas container while working this morning,” the district of Anhalt-Bitterfeld announced.

“The man died instantly and had to be rescued from the vehicle by the fire department,” police said.

There was flammable material stored on the scrap heap, which began to burn due to the explosion. Meier: “The fire was extinguished by our 50 firefighters at around 11.45 a.m.”

According to the district office, the surrounding buildings are currently being checked for structural stability. At the moment, the number of emergency personnel on site is already being reduced.