Explosion, fire at German chemical plant injures 18, causes air quality concerns

An explosion and subsequent fire Monday at the main plant of German chemical giant BASF left 18 people slightly injured including seven firefighters, police said.

The explosion occurred around at the massive Ludwigshafen plant, BASF said, setting off a fire that was extinguished by an hour later.

The company said its injured employees had received care on site.

Images showed a cloud of smoke emanating from the Ludwigshafen plant, the largest chemicals complex in the world.

Residents were initially told to keep doors and windows shut, but authorities in the western German city later gave the all-clear.

Environmental monitoring vehicles had detected “slightly elevated levels of hydrocarbons” in the immediate area, BASF said.

But the company said it had not recorded “any contamination of the air, soil or water” after the incident, adding that “There was no danger to the public.”

The company said the explosion was believed to have been triggered by “the emission of an organic solvent”.

But the cause of the incident is still being investigated.

In 2016, the Ludwigshafen site was rocked by an explosion followed by a blaze that left five people dead.

Around 39,000 people work at the site.