The Czech Republic explosion took place in the town of Kralupy nad Vltavou, north of Prague.
An official said the explosion took place at an industrial site at the town, leaving six dead and several suffering “devastating” injuries.
A spokesman for Unipetrol, which operates a Synthos chemical facility at the chemical plant, said the “extraordinary event occurred in our premises”.
Fire spokeswoman Vladimara Kerekova said six people died and an unspecified number were injured.
Four people have been treated for injuries so far, two of which are in a serious condition.
One 42-year-old male was taken from the building suffering from head injuries. Another person has burns to 10% of his body and a third has “devastating facial injuries”.
A high-level ‘trauma-plan’ has been activated at nearby hospitals.
An tank filled with an unspecified substance is believed to have erupted with deadly consequence earlier this morning.
A police spokeswoman said: “According to initial reports, an explosion occurred in one of the companies on the premises. We will find the cause.”
Rescue crews and helicopters are at the scene. The area has also been sealed off by police.
Synthos is a huge Polish manufacturing firm which employs 2700 people worldwide. It firm produces and sells chemical raw materials, emulsion rubbers, and expanded polystyrene across the globe.
A statement on the company website said: “We are one of the largest manufacturers of chemical raw materials in Poland. Our products can be found in most Polish households – probably also in yours. We manufacture the largest volumes of synthetic rubber and expandable polystyrene in Europe.”
This is a breaking story, more to follow…