Explosion Kills 1 At Middlesex Water Treatment Plant: Report

MIDDLESEX, NC — One person died in an industrial explosion east of Raleigh on Friday, officials say. A fire tank exploded at the Pencco plant in Middlesex Friday morning, the Nash County fire marshal told WRAL.

Two people were working at the facility when the tank exploded, according to the TV station.

The plant on Route 264 treats wastewater and water treatment chemicals.

Those working in the area at 9:30 a.m. heard a boom, felt the ground shake, saw smoke and witnessed pieces of the tank fly into nearby woods and the driveway of a neighboring business, CBS North Carolina reported.

The decedent was a man whose identity was not being publicly released pending next-of-kin notification, according to CBS. Officials said that emergency management personnel and firefighters were responding to the scene.

Read the reports from WRAL and CBS.

Graphic by Patch.