A massive Connecticut power plant explosion has left 50 dead and 250 injured, according to media reports. Twitter is bursting at the seams with updates on the crisis.
The natural gas explosion occurred at 11.26 a.m. EST at the Kleen Energy Power Plant on River Road in Middletown. The station is a 620-megawatt, gas-fired power plant which was under construction at the time of the incident
A Middletown Police Department official stated that some testing was underway at the time of the explosion, “but, obviously something went wrong,” he said. “A lot of mutual aid is coming in.”
Crews were conducting gas blows, a practice used to clean out the pipelines. There were also massive injuries and a search-and-rescue operation is ongoing in the rubble.
The massive blast caused extensive damage to the construction site and to nearby buildings. An investigation into the cause of the explosion is already underway.
Initial reports would seem to indicate that as many as many as 250 people were injured. A local hospital also claims that up to 50 people were killed, although that has not been verified.
The Middletown Fire Department reports that departments from all over the state are helping local emergency responders. Hospitals in the region have been put on stand-by to receive casualties. The blast was felt as many as ten miles away.
A press conference has been planned for just before 3 p.m. EST.
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