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Feb 7, 2008 10:00 pm US/Eastern
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Ga. Sugar Refinery Explosion Injures Dozens
SAVANNAH, Ga. (CBS News) ―
Dozens of people were injured in an explosion and fire at a sugar refinery that was felt by residents throughout the Savannah suburb of Port Wentworth Thursday night, authorities said.
No deaths were reported immediately at the plant owned by Imperial Sugar, known as a longtime Savannah landmark as the Dixie Crystals plant, witnesses described widespread damage.
"We have an unconfirmed number of injuries, well over 50 to 100 at this point," said Sgt. Mike Wilson, spokesman for the Savannah-Chatham County police. He said the explosion happened at about 7 p.m.
There was no immediate word on what caused it. Officials said it apparently started in an area of the factory known as the "bagging plant," but they did not know how many people were working there at the time. Hospitals in Savannah were expecting more than 30 arrivals, many in critical condition. Authorities were still searching for victims more than two hours later.
CBS News affiliate WTOC has confirmed there has been a partial collapse of the building.
Firefighters are being sent in to the refinery about four at a time looking for people who may be still trapped inside. Captain Matt Stanley with Savannah Fire told WTOC they believe nine people are inside the building who are unaccounted for.
"There was fire all over the building," said Nakishya Hill, a machine operator who said she escaped from the third floor of the refinery on the Savannah River.
"All I know is, I heard a loud boom and everything came down," said Hill, who was uninjured except for blisters on her elbow.
"When I got up, I went down and found a couple of people and we climbed out of there from the third floor to the first floor. Half of the floor was gone. The second floor was debris, the first floor was debris.
"All I could do when I got down was take off running," she said.
Dr. Jay Goldstein, an emergency room physician at Memorial University Medical Center, said there were 30 to 35 patients being treated, and all were in critical condition. Goldstein said no more were expected by ambulance, but it was impossible to say how many would arrive on their own.
At Candler Hospital, there were three patients in serious condition.
A triage center was set up at Our Lady of Lourdes Catholic Church in Port Wentworth, where Savannah-Chatham police Maj. Gerry Long said 28 had been sent on to hospitals.
"They are still looking for and bringing people out," she said about 9:30 p.m.
Coast Guard Lt. Cmdr. Kevin Lynn said the river was shut down to ship traffic from the port of Savannah while the river was searched for possible victims. He said none had been reported and none had been found, and there was no oil or other hazardous material in the water. WTOC is reporting that the river has now been reopened to traffic after officials did not find anyone in the water.
"It's a large facility, and there is still a significant amount of fire," said Clayton Scott, assistant direcotor of Chatham County Emergency Management Agency. He described the refinery as covering an area the size of a Super Wal-Mart.
Joyce Baker was the first emergency responder on the scene and she spoke with WTOC via phone.
"We were at the Port Wentworth courthouse and we stepped outside after a meeting and we heard the explosion and we saw the sparks and the flames shoot up," Baker explained. "The ground shook, my husband was with me and we raced over here, he's a Port Wentworth police officer. I got my trauma bag out and by the time we got out there, there were already 13 people coming out with third degree burns and it was like walking into hell."
Imperial Sugar, based in Sugar Land, Texas, acquired Savannah Foods & Industries, the producer of Dixie Crystals, in 1997. The aquisition doubled the size of the company, making it the largest processor and refiner of sugar in the U.S., according to the company Web site.
Imperial markets some of the country's leading consumer brands, Imperial, Dixie Crystals and Holly, as well as supplying sugar and sweetener products to industrial food manufacturers.
(© 2008 CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. The Associated Press contributed to this report.)