A massive explosion at a fertiliser plant near Waco in Texas has injured dozens of people and killed an unknown number of others, leaving the factory as a smouldering ruin and levelling buildings for blocks in every direction.
The explosion at West Fertiliser in West, a community about 20 miles north of Waco, happened shortly before 8 pm on Wednesday (0100GMT Thursday) and could be heard as far away as Waxahachie, 45 miles to the north.
It sent flames shooting high into the night sky, and rained burning embers, shrapnel and debris down on shocked and frightened residents.
Although authorities said it will be some time before they know the full extent of the loss of life, Texas Department of Public Safety spokesman DL Wilson said just after midnight local time that an unknown number of people had died.
Among the damaged buildings was what appeared to be a housing complex with a collapsed roof, a nearby middle school and the West Rest Haven Nursing Home, from which first-responders evacuated 133 patients, some in wheelchairs.
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