An explosion at a manufacturing facility shocked Gloucester County in New Jersey to its core on Wednesday afternoon. The event happened in Swedesboro at Savita Naturals in the Pureland Industrial Complex. Emergency services received reports of a large fire near Route 322 and Interstate 295 at around 2:30 yesterday afternoon and arrived on scene within minutes. The explosion, which was apparently heard for miles, also resulted in reports from nearby cities in Pennsylvania and Delaware.
According to the firefighters first on the scene, the explosion had caused the facility to collapse, and the fire quickly spread to the neighboring buildings. The facility, which specializes in cocoa butter processing, reportedly has a “large amount of propane” stored on site, according to Gloucester County Prosecutor’s Office Public Information Officer Rebecca Forand. Officials are still investigating the cause of the explosion and what role the propane gas may have played. Forand also stated that, while her department will continue its investigation, so far, “it does not look like there’s any criminal activity” involved.
Due to the presence of the propane, a shelter-in-place order was issued for a two-mile radius around the facility. Heron Drive and High Hill Road were completely shut down for nearly 2 hours before the order was lifted around 5 pm. However, the 600 block of Heron Drive has remained closed.
According to Logan Township Police Chief Joseph Flatley, “This is the largest industrial accident that [he] can recall” in the 25 years he has spent on the force. During his public statement, he reassured citizens, saying, “The community is safe. There are no ongoing hazards”. Fire and hazmat crews also remained on scene to “monitor a burn-off of an additional fuel product”. According to officials, no hazardous materials were found on site, but air quality will continue to be monitored.
4 Savita Naturals employees who were inside the building when the explosion happened were critically injured. Officials reported that the four people were taken to nearby hospitals, with 3 going to Cooper University Hospital, including 2 severely burned trauma victims, and the other going to a hospital in Philadelphia. A fifth person was also taken to the hospital, an employee at a neighboring business, after suffering a medical emergency following the explosion. This morning, a spokesperson for Cooper Health announced that two of the patients were transferred to Temple’s burn unit in Philadelphia. The other patient was treated and released.
New Jersey Governor Mikie Sherrill shared in a social media post last night that state police will be working closely with emergency management officials and local first responders to handle the investigation. She also stated, “We are actively supporting with the resource coordination and will continue to monitor the situation to ensure the safety of residents and support those impacted”.
