At least 11 injured at Givaudan Sense Color factory

An explosion shortly after 3 p.m. in the Clifton neighborhood Tuesday afternoon sent at least 11 people to the hospital and blew out windows in the area.

Check back for live updates from the scene.

In a statement last night, Givaudian, owner of the factory in the Clifton neighborhood, announced that two workers had caused the explosion on Tuesday.

Two patients injured in the explosion are in critical condition, University of Louisville Hospital Chief Medical Officer Dr. Jason Smith said at a meeting press conference Tuesday evening.

Five other patients undergoing treatment are in stable condition, Smith said. UofL is treating seven of the 11 patients injured in the explosion.

Explosion in Louisville: At least 11 injured at Givaudan Sense Color factory

An explosion in 1900 on Payne Street in the Clifton neighborhood has left 11 people hospitalized. No fatalities have been reported.

Two patients injured in the explosion are in critical condition, University of Louisville Hospital Chief Physician Dr. Jason Smith, during a press conference.

Five other patients undergoing treatment are in stable condition, Smith said. UofL is treating seven of the 11 people hospitalized in the explosion.

Smith said patients were injured by the force of the blast, from burns or from debris that fell during the explosion.

The patients UofL received were cleaned during a decontamination process before being treated for their wounds, he said.

“For something like this, they were exposed to a lot of different chemicals, so we made sure we sanitized them for everything,” Smith said.

Jacob Hayden has lived on Payne Street for about ten years and “could throw a rock” at the factory where he lives.

He left work early after seeing media reports about the explosion. After waiting behind yellow caution tape for about an hour, authorities finally let him walk to his home. Some windows were broken, items fell off the shelves and his two cats were shaken, he said.

The thought that an accident could affect him because he lives just a few doors down from the factory has lingered in the back of his mind for years, he said. He heard about the explosion at the same factory in 2003, but concerns that something serious could happen now feel more real, he said.

Hayden doubts the wisdom of operating a factory in a predominantly residential area.

“There shouldn’t be a factory in a residential area if you ask me. Not at all,” he said. “The company needs to be looked at for a long time.”

Plant explosion in the 1900 block of Payne Street in the Clifton neighborhood

First responders and city officials responded to the scene of a factory explosion in the 1900 block of Payne Street in the Clifton neighborhood

Sam Upshaw Jr.

Officials say 11 people were hospitalized after an explosion in the 1900 block of Payne Street in the Clifton neighborhood on Tuesday afternoon, although no deaths were reported.

According to a LENSAlert from Louisville Metro Emergency Services, a shelter-in-place order was lifted within a 1 mile radius of the explosion site at 4:39 p.m. Officials urged people to stay away from the area while the investigation is ongoing.

Officers from the Louisville Metro Police Fifth Division blocked the roadway at the scene. LMPD officials said on social media.

A WAVE-TV weather camera captured the incident, showing large amounts of smoke coming from the building Tuesday afternoon.

Students at Breckinridge-Franklin Elementary, located 0.5 miles from the blast site, and Lincoln Elementary Performing Arts School, just over 2 miles from the blast site, sheltered in place Tuesday afternoon but were given permission to return shortly before 4 p.m. hours to leave. , said district spokesperson Carolyn Callahan.

Students at the Kentucky School for the Blind were also sheltering in place, officials said in a Facebook post. All students are safe and responsible at school.

‘It was so loud. I couldn’t believe it’

Arthur Smith, a resident of the Clifton neighborhood, said he was walking down South Spring Street when he heard the bang. “I heard it and felt it in the ground,” he said. “I’ll tell you what, it got your attention.”

Smith isn’t sure what exactly happened, but he said it’s unlike anything he’s experienced while living in the area.

Karen Roberts, assistant community director at the Axis in Lexington, was showing an apartment to a potential tenant when she heard the explosion. Tenants at the 300-unit Clifton complex rushed to their balconies to see what was happening, she said.

“It was so loud. I couldn’t believe it,” she said in her office, about a block from a police blockade on Payne Street. “…You can practically see the plant in some people’s back windows.”

Residents were briefly locked out when the complex lost power, she said, but were able to get back in when the lights came back on about 10 seconds later.

Erik Hart and his partner, who own a house across the street, arrived in the area near the explosion around 4:10 p.m. after receiving a call from their tenant saying the house’s windows had been broken by a crash.

The couple came in hopes of helping their tenant get out of the house, where she is still sheltering. They also brought materials to seal the windows, Hart said.

Last year, the Louisville Metro Air Pollution Control District issued two notices of violation against Givaudan Sense Color’s Payne Street facility.

In one case, the district alleged that the company “failed to submit annual reports, semi-annual reports, and annual compliance certifications within the permitted timeframes, and failed to monitor and record the range of equipment” as required by the facility’s permit.

In another case, the district said the company failed to file excess emissions notices as required by district regulations.

Both cases were resolved through settlements with the district, totaling $7,500, according to district records.

An explosion at the plant in April 2003 released 26,000 pounds of aqua-ammonia, or ammonia solution in water, according to an investigation by the U.S. Chemical Safety and Hazard Investigation Board.

The explosion, which was associated with a power supply tank failure, killed one worker and led to the evacuation of 26 people and shelter for 1,500 people.

The board’s investigation found that the company did not have “effective programs to determine whether equipment and processes met basic process and plant engineering requirements,” and did not have adequate operating procedures and training programs for plant operators .

Eboni Cochran, environmental justice advocate with Rubbertown Emergency ACtion, said the Clifton explosion is a prime example of how vulnerable communities can be when chemical industries are located near residential areas.

“There is a very good chance that many people living in this city think that sheltering in place means simply staying indoors, when that is not the case. It is also very likely that many of those who evacuated did not have backpacks with them,” he said. them. said in a statement. “There are a lot of questions that residents in that area need to ask. I hope there will be full disclosure.”

Monica Unseld, a local advocate for environmental justice and public health, called on city officials to endorse and adopt the Louisville Charter for Safer Chemicals in the aftermath of the explosion.

“This explosion once again underlines the need for communities to have the ‘right to know’ when it comes to the chemicals in their communities,” she said in a statement. “It also emphasizes the fact that all jobs must be safe for workers and the surrounding communities.”

This is a current story and will be updated.