By RIA Novosti
Washington : More than 50 workers have been injured and five were missing when a powerful explosion occurred at a sugar plant in the Georgia state of the US, local authorities said.
Soon after the blast around 7 p.m. Thursday, a fire broke out at the Imperial Sugar Company plant in Port Wentworth, a suburb of Savannah.
At least 35 people were hospitalised with severe burns, while some others received minor injuries, the police said.
Witnesses said up to 200 people could be trapped. There was no immediate report of fatalities.
“We have seen people who have sustained 80-90 percent burns on their body,” said Jay Goldstein at the Memorial Medical Centre in Savannah.
Police spokesperson Gerri Long said the damage at the refinery was “extensive”.
More than 100 police personnel and firefighters are involved in the rescue operation.