2 dead and others hurt after explosion at a business in Louisville, Kentucky, neighborhood

By Emma Tucker, Kia Fatahi, Taylor Galgano and Andy Rose, CNN

(CNN) — Two workers were killed in a massive explosion at a commercial facility in Louisville, Kentucky, Tuesday afternoon, the factory’s owner announced – the same site where a deadly blast happened over two decades ago.

“We are deeply saddened to share the news that two of our team members lost their lives in this accident. Several other individuals were also injured,” owner Givaudan said in a statement. “We are grieving with the families, friends, and loved ones of those that were lost and injured during this very difficult time.”

One of the workers who died was found in the rubble hours after the company had initially stated there were no employees missing, according to Louisville Mayor Craig Greenberg. “We’d been told by the business that all employees were accounted for,” Greenberg said in a news conference. “Tragically, that was not the case.”

CNN reached out to Givaudan on Wednesday for further comment.

The explosion at the Givaudan Sense Colour plant was felt miles away in Jeffersonville, Indiana, across the Ohio River from Louisville, according to CNN affiliate WLKY. It blew out the windows of at least four nearby retail businesses in the Clifton neighborhood, WLKY reported.

Twelve people who were hurt in the explosion were taken to the hospital, according to the mayor’s office. Three people were still hospitalized Wednesday with non-life-threatening injuries, University of Louisville Hospital spokesperson Heather Fountaine told CNN.

“We are in the early stages of investigating the cause of this incident and are cooperating with first responders and supporting agencies,” Givaudan said. “We appreciate their heroic response and send our thanks to those in the community who have shown their support throughout the day.”

Givaudan Sense Colour makes “natural colours for multisensorial food and beverage experiences,” its website states.

The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives is assisting fire investigators in determining the cause of the explosion, said Shawn Morrow, who is in charge of the agency’s Louisville Field Division.

“We don’t have any reason to believe at the moment that there was any type of nefarious activity,” Morrow said.

The blast was heard in the city around 3 p.m., and local agencies responded to a “large scale incident” involving hazardous materials, the Louisville Fire Department said on X.

“It was so loud, and it was too much to be a transformer,” witness Gena Boling told WLKY. “It was loud, and you could feel it.”

Photos sent to CNN affiliate WAVE appeared to show metal debris from the factory strewn across residential properties in the area. “Please do not remove any debris that’s in your yard. Please do not touch any of the damage,” Mayor Greenberg said.

Officials issued a shelter-in-place order for people within a 1-mile radius of the site. An evacuation order was issued for houses in the two blocks surrounding the site because those residents could not shelter-in-place after their windows were “blown out,” said Louisville Fire Chief Brian O’Neill.

“We’re dealing now with an unstable building that has partially collapsed and could collapse further,” O’Neill said Wednesday.

The shelter-in-place order was being lifted, the mayor said late Tuesday afternoon, but he urged residents in the area to “err on the side of caution.”

The city used a drone to monitor air quality in the area. “We did not find any evidence of any release of anything hazardous,” said O’Neill.

Not the first time

It isn’t the first explosion at the Payne Street location, according to a report from the US Chemical Safety and Hazard Investigation Board.

This facility formerly belonged to D.D. Williamson & Company, but that company was acquired by Givaudan in 2021 and changed its name to Givaudan Sense Colour in 2023, the company previously said in a news release.

On April 11, 2003, one worker was killed at the D.D. Williamson plant when a “process vessel became over pressurized,” releasing 26,000 pounds of aqueous ammonia into the air and sending debris flying, according to the board’s report.

The explosion caused extensive damage to the plant, which prompted 26 residents to evacuate and 1,500 people to be sheltered in place at the time. The company was ultimately fined $10,000 by the Kentucky Labor Cabinet for the 2003 explosion, according to the Occupational Safety and Health Administration.

Although the cause of Tuesday’s explosion has not been determined, the fire chief said they believe it is not the same material as the 2004 blast. “That dealt with a solid anhydrous ammonia that is no longer on site,” O’Neill said.

In March 2004, D.D. Williamson & Company President and CEO Tex Nixon acknowledged the tragic accident in a public hearing. “This was a difficult experience for everyone. We lost a friend and associate in the accident, and certainly caused some anxiety among our many friends and neighbors in the Clifton community,” said Nixon.

The 2003 blast killed a 44-year-old worker named Louis Perry, according to records of the public hearing. Perry’s granddaughter, Lorrie Hibbard, told CNN on Tuesday, “This has brought up a lot of memories of that explosion that took him.

“And you would think that after one explosion, it wouldn’t happen again. But here we are,” said Hibbard, who has lived in Louisville her whole life. “All I heard was that there was an explosion at the plant again, and it just takes you right back to 2003.”

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CNN’s Ritu Prasad and Taylor Romine contributed to this report.