Several people were killed after explosion levels at a military explosives factory in Tennessee

An explosion at a military munitions plant left one dead and one missing on Friday, a Tennessee county sheriff said, while first responders said secondary explosions forced rescuers to move away from the burning site.

The explosion occurred at Accurate Energetic Systems, according to the Hickman County Sheriff’s Office. The company’s website says it manufactures and tests explosives at an eight-building facility sprawled across the wooded hills near Bucksnort, Tennessee, a town about 95 kilometers southwest of Nashville.

“We have multiple people unaccounted for at this time. We are trying to be concerned about the families and this situation,” Humphreys County Sheriff Chris Davis said at a news conference.

“We have some deceased.”

The cause of the explosion was not immediately known. Video from the scene showed flames and thick smoke rising from the debris field, and residents miles away reported feeling the explosion.

Hickman County Advanced Emergency Medical Team David Stewart said by phone that emergency crews were initially unable to enter the plant due to ongoing explosions. He had no details on whether anyone had been injured.

People in the area felt the explosion

Accurate Energetic Systems, based in nearby McEwan, did not immediately respond to a phone message seeking comment Friday morning.

“This is a tragedy for our community,” McEwen Mayor Brad Rashford said in an email. He referred further comment to the county official.

Nashville-based WTVF-TV broadcast images of debris scattered around the site and damaged vehicles in the parking lot. The news station said it received calls from people in the area who felt a large explosion.

Residents in Loubellville, Tennessee, a 20-minute drive from the scene, said they felt their homes shaking, and some people captured the loud explosion on their home cameras.

The explosion jolted Gentry Stover from his sleep.

“I thought the house collapsed while I was inside,” he said by phone. “I live near Accurate and I realized about 30 seconds after I woke up that it had to be this way.”