Police release info on DuPont explosion

TONAWANDA, N.Y. (RELEASE) - At approximately 11:10 a.m. Tuesday morning, the town of Tonawanda Police Department and local volunteer fire companies responded to a call of an explosion at the DuPont facility on River Road.

Due to the nature of the business and the unknown factors of the incident itself, a large response of fire, EMS and police went to the scene. Responders learned that tow men working for an outside contractor called Mollenberg Specialty Contractors were working on a 10,000 gallon tank when the explosion occurred. The tank, which was empty, would normally hold a chemical called vinyl fluoride.

The exact cause of the explosion is unknown at this time. Several internal investigations into the accident are forthcoming. OSHA also responded. As a result of the accident, one man was killed and the other taken to the hospital with injuries. The nature and severity of those injuries is not known at this time. The names of those men are not being released at this time.

The police department is considering this to be an industrial accident, but will be continuing to investigate.