A nineteen-year-old died after they were struck by a flying cannister that was flung from a huge industrial fire in a vape distribution factory.
Shocking footage captured the aftermath of the inferno as plumes of smoke filled the area in Clinton Township, Michigan on Monday night.
Police said debris was flung over a mile away from the explosion, with the teenager reportedly fatally struck from over 1,000ft away.
The explosion was initially caused by a truckload of butane that caught fire, sparking hundreds of smaller explosions as cannisters inside the factory burst into flames – leading officials to warn the surrounding area could be filled with toxic smoke.
Shocking images captured the aftermath of the inferno as plumes of smoke filled the area in Clinton Township, Michigan
The explosion was caused by a truckload of butane that caught fire, which then sparked hundreds of small fires as cannisters detonated, and officials warned residents to stay away from the region
Police said debris was flung over a mile away from the explosion, with the killed teenager reportedly struck from over 1,000ft away
Emergency responders raced to the scene shortly before 9pm Monday at the vaping distribution company, which was around 25 miles outside Detroit.
According to WXYZ, vape distributor Goo was the source of the fire, and the numerous butane and propane components in their factory sparked hundreds of smaller explosions as they were caught by the flames.
As cannisters detonated in the factory, firefighters were initially prevented from reaching the fire, the Clinton Fire Department said, leading them to deploy ladder trucks to pour water on the inferno from above.
Firefighters at the scene added that they arrived to ‘materials flying in all directions from the building.’
Officials said a firefighter also suffered a minor injury resulting from the blast, after one of the cannisters flew through the windshield of a fire truck and hit them.
On Monday night, the Clinton Township Police Department issued an urgent warning for residents to stay away, because they did not ‘know what was burning’ at the time and didn’t ‘know the effects of the smoke.’
‘We can not stress enough the danger that is happening right now. Please, please, please stay inside and out of the vicinity,’ police said in a statement.
‘Debris is being projected into the air and coming down as far as a mile away from the explosion.’
On Tuesday morning, officials said there was no danger to the community, but were reportedly still battling the flames raging on from the night before.
Hundreds of small explosions prevented fire crews from initially reaching the flames, and ladder trucks were deployed to pour water on the inferno from above
Four people were reportedly inside the factory when the fire began, but made it out safely after evacuating as soon as they heard the canisters popping and cracking
Plumes of red smoke filled the area, leading officials to warn the surrounding area could be filled with toxic smoke
The nineteen-year-old killed by the flying debris has not been named.
Four people were reportedly inside the factory when the fire began, but made it out safely after evacuating as soon as they heard the canisters popping and cracking.
Clinton Township Fire Chief Tim Duncan confirmed several firetrucks and police vehicles were damaged by the flying debris.
Duncan added that there were also some smaller fuel fires on nearby railway tracks that were quickly extinguished.