Multiple dead, 19 missing after blast at US explosives plant

Nineteen people were missing and an unspecified number were killed after a massive blast tore through a US military explosives plant on Friday, prompting emergency responders to scour the ravaged site for any survivors, officials said.

Aerial footage broadcast by US media showed smoldering debris at the factory in Hickman County, Tennessee, with charred and mangled vehicles strewn across the facility.

"At this time we have been able to confirm that we do have 19 souls that we're looking for," Humphreys County Sheriff Chris Davis told reporters. 

"There are fatalities. I don't want to put a number to that... I can tell you right now we are looking for 19 individuals."

The plant in Bucksnort, Tennessee - roughly 56 miles (90km) south west of Nashville - specialises in the development, manufacture, handling and storage of explosives.

The explosion occurred at a plant run by Accurate Energetic Systems in Hickman County's Bucksnort area, prompting official warnings for the public to avoid the area amid fears of secondary explosions.

Davis said the blast engulfed an entire building at the facility, calling it "the most devastating scene that I've seen in my career."

The blast was so massive that it was heard across a large distance, with debris scattering across half a square mile, he added.

When asked to describe the state of the building where the explosion occurred, Davis said: "There's nothing to describe. It's gone."

Cause unclear

It was not immediately clear what triggered the explosion.

As officials scoured the site for clues, authorities acknowledged the agonizing wait for the families of those missing.

"I'm sure there's people that's angry, I'm sure that there's people that's very sad, very upset, and I can understand that," Davis said.

"It's hell on us. It's hell on everybody involved."

Tennessee Governor Bill Lee said he was monitoring the situation.

"State agencies are responding in partnership with local (and) federal agencies," he wrote on the social media platform X. "We ask Tennesseans to join us in prayer for the families impacted by this tragic incident."

Accurate Energetic Systems, an explosives manufacturer founded in 1980, did not immediately respond to AFP's request for comment.

The company's Facebook page says it manufactures "various high explosive compositions and specialty products" for the US Department of Defense as well as US industrial markets.

Last month, the US government awarded Accurate Energetic Systems a contract worth nearly $120 million for the "procurement of TNT," according to the Pentagon.