Tennessee, United States – 18 people are missing after an explosion occurred on Friday at a military ammunition factory in the US state of Tennessee.
The explosion, which occurred at Accurate Energy Systems, about 100 kilometers west of Nashville, caused a number of deaths.
But officials have not yet determined their number.
Humphrey County Sheriff Chris Davis said at a news conference that the incident was “one of the most devastating situations I have ever experienced in my career”.
He added that it would take time to determine the cause.
“There will be no brief explanation for that,” he said.
He confirmed that investigators from the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives were at the scene.
When asked to describe the building where the explosion occurred, Davis said: “There is nothing to describe”. The building was leveled to the ground.
Footage from an aerial video broadcast by the American news network CNN showed a building that had become a relic after an eye.
In a nearby parking garage, debris and ash were scattered among a few parked cars.
Davis initially said 19 people were missing, but WSMV later reported, citing officials, that one of those believed to be among the missing was found safe in his home.