Residents Urged Indoors After Blast At German Chemical Site

A huge explosion at a chemical park in the western German city of Leverkusen on Tuesday sent a column of black smoke into the air, with officials urging residents to shelter indoors and close their windows

Frankfurt, (APP - UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 27th Jul, 2021 ) :A huge explosion at a chemical park in the western German city of Leverkusen on Tuesday sent a column of black smoke into the air, with officials urging residents to shelter indoors and close their windows.

The blast at the Chempark industrial site triggered an "extreme danger" alert on Germany's NINA warning app, urging residents to close all doors and windows and keep the emergency phone numbers free as much as possible.

Police in the nearby city of Cologne tweeted that they were closing several motorways in the Leverkusen area because of "major damage".

There were no immediate reports of injuries.

Residents said the blast could be heard far and wide, with some saying their windows were rattled by the force of the explosion.

Many shared images on social media of the smoke billowing from the chemical site in Leverkusen's Buerrig district, which houses several well-known companies including Bayer, Evonik Industries and Lanxess.

Local media reported that the explosion appears to have originated from a hazardous waste incineration plant on the site.

"For still unknown reasons there was an explosion at Chempark Leverkusen," the Chempark company said on its Twitter feed, adding that firefighters were at the scene.

"Residents are asked to move into closed rooms and keeps doors and windows shut."