GEORGIA, November 8, 2022— communities in southeastern Georgia were ordered to evacuate Monday as “multiple explosions” at a chemical plant on Colonel’s Island have led to a fire, police say.
The blaze is impacting the Symrise Chemical Plant outside of Brunswick, according to the Glynn County Sheriff’s Office.
“The plant has been evacuated, and multiple explosions have been reported,” the sheriff’s office said. “There is a multi-agency fire detail on scene with more en route.”
The cause of the reported explosions was not immediately clear.
Symrise, on its website, says it creates “inspiring fragrance, flavor, natural nutrition and cosmetic ingredients solutions” for brands around the world.
In a statement provided to Fox News Digital, the company said “Given first estimates, no one got injured and there is no danger to employees or residents. Local fire brigades and police fully control the situation on site.”
“The fire occurred during the regular production hours for the manufacture of fragrance ingredients,” the statement added. “Currently Symrise has no reason to believe that the fire will cause additional health hazards to the local community.”
The Glynn County Board of Commissioners later said one firefighter suffered minor injuries and that the blaze is “contained” and “will burn out.”
The Hickory Bluff, Satilla Shores and Royal Oaks neighborhoods were being evacuated, the board added.
Jacksonville Fire and Rescue Capt. Eric Prosswimmer said crews scrambled to put out the massive flames but they didn’t have enough resources and additional crews were called out.
In all, 1.3 million gallons of water were used to fight the fire, but it was not enough. Additional explosions put the safety of nearby residents at risk.
In addition to residents, nearby schools were also ordered to shelter in place.
Update 3:55 p.m.: Camden County EMA says they have received reports of a chemical smell in parts of the county outside of the shelter-in-place area.
“We have confirmed that the smell is due to terpenes coming from the chemical plant incident… Terpenes are naturally occurring chemical compounds.
____________________
Source: Fox News and WJCL ABC contributed to the article.
