Two injured in plant explosion remain critical

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(AP) - Two employees injured when a chemical plant exploded and caught fire in Spooner remain hospitalized in critical condition.

Aaron Merchant is being treated at Hennepin County Medical Center in Minneapolis. Cory LaBonte is at Miller-Dwan Medical Center in Duluth. Hospital representatives say both are in critical condition.

The plant owned by St. Paul-based Cortec Corp. exploded at 8:43 a.m. The Wisconsin State Patrol said the cause was not immediately determined.

The plant made aerosols and paint solvents, Wisconsin Emergency Management spokeswoman Lori Getter said, but it appeared no hazardous chemicals were involved in the fire that broke out at the time of the blast.

There were six people in the plant at the time, including the two injured workers, the state patrol said. The other four workers were not hurt. The blast destroyed much of the building, the patrol said.

Both men live in the Spooner area, according to Anna Vignetti, vice president for St. Paul, Minn.-based Cortec, which makes products for corrosion control and has about eight employees at the plant.

"We're just praying for their well-being and focusing on that," she said Tuesday night.

As for the cause of the explosion, "it's really a mystery at this point in time," she said.

The plant stored thousands of gallons of combustible aerosol propellents in 2007, according to the latest chemical inventory Cortec was required to file with the state.

"Yeah, it will go. These things are very flammable," said Andy Garcia-Rivera, director of environment, health and safety at the University of Wisconsin-Madison and a hazardous materials expert.

The patrol said it evacuated homes and businesses within a half-mile of the plant. Emergency workers set up a two-block perimeter around it. Schools nearby kept students inside until their normal dismissal time.

A hazardous materials team from Superior ran tests for chemical contaminants in the air. Emergency officials announced just before 5 p.m. Tuesday that the air posed no threat to people and allowed residents to return home.

Two inspectors from the Occupational Safety & Health Administration were investigating, said Carl Schmuck, assistant area director for the OSHA office in Eau Claire. State Department of Natural Resources workers planned to perform soil and water tests.

The plant is on the outskirts of Spooner, which has about 2,700 residents. Highway 63, going north and south, was closed near the scene.

Terri Kludt said she and her husband drove past the explosion while heading to their pizza shop Tuesday morning. The explosion was loud, and tall flames were followed by a big smoke cloud, she said.

"It was scary and it was icky and it was sad and you know, not a fun morning," said Kludt, who owns Denelie's Pizza about a mile from the plant.

Minong resident Jim Biros drove by about five minutes after the blast while on his way to work in Shell Lake.

"The bright red flames were 30 to 40 feet in the air and the smoke was pitch black," he said. "There were pieces of ash falling everywhere. I've never seen anything like it."

(Copyright 2008 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)