CHICAGO — A chemical explosion at W.R. Meadows Inc. in Hampshire Friday morning left one person dead and another critically injured, Hampshire Fire Protection District Chief Trevor Herrmann said.
The incident occurred about 10:45 a.m. when the two employees were cleaning a tank inside one of the buildings, Herrmann said. It’s not yet known what type of chemicals were involved or what might have triggered the accident, he said.
W.R. Meadows manufactures asphalt and concrete products for building construction, he said.
The person killed has not been identified pending notification of family members by the Kane County Coroner’s Office. The injury victim was taken to an Elgin hospital.
All employees have been accounted for and there were no other injuries, officials said.
The explosion caused significant property damage to the materials production facility where it occurred, Hampshire Village Manager Jay Hedges said. People living and working near the site were evacuated for safety reasons, and a village inspector is on site to determine the building’s structural integrity, Hedges said.
The facility is located near North State Street and Allen Road/Route 3 on the village’s north side near Interstate 90, not far from Elgin, Carpentersville and West Dundee.
No flames were visible when firefighters responded to the scene, Herrmann said.
“The investigation continues to go on. We don’t exactly know what caused the explosion,” he said. “We are very early on in the investigation.”
More information could be available later Friday afternoon, Herrmann said.
Hampshire police were stationed at the facility’s entrance to control access to the 300 Industrial Drive site. A line of semi trucks waiting to gain to drop off materials were kept outside for about an hour before being directed to leave.
Only employees were allowed to enter and exit the premises, which is surrounded by a cyclone fence.
W.R. Meadows is a family-owned company that designs, manufactures, and markets construction building materials, according to its website, www.wrmeadows.com.
Founded in 1926, the company manufactures products that are distributed to businesses in Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kentucky, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska, North Dakota, Ohio, South Dakota, West Virginia, Wisconsin and parts of Kansas and Pennsylvania, the site said.
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