Five employees of the Blue Rhino propane gas plant in Florida that violently exploded last night are fighting for their lives in critical condition today as investigators examine whether a simple spark from a forklift at the site could have caused the terrifying blast. Eight people were injured in the explosion in Tavares in Lake County, Florida, about 11pm on Monday, though miraculously no one was killed. The explosions forced the evacuation of all residents within a mile radius of the plant - as firefighters feared the three massive bulk tanks at the site, each with 30,000 pounds of the gas, would detonate.
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Between 24 and 26 workers were doing the night shift on Monday at Blue Rhino, a propane tank-exchange business in Tavares, Lake County
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The huge blasts began just after 11 p.m. and then continued every few seconds for a period of around two hours
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Fifteen workers were initially reported missing, feared dead, but Blue Rhino said that by 2 a.m. Tuesday all of its employees had been accounted for
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Residents within a mile of the plant were initially evacuated but the zone was later reduced to half a mile
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Some living more than 10 miles away reported bomb-like blasts and their homes shaking
'In my 36 years in the fire service, I've never seen anything like this,' @placeholder Fire Chief Richard Keith said.