12 Injured In Beechcraft Aviation Manufacturing Plant Explosion

About 12 people were hurt in a liquid nitrogen tank explosion at the Beechcraft aviation manufacturing facility in east Wichita on Friday.

KAKE News reported eleven people who were hospitalized while four others were treated on the scene.

According to Fire Chief James Fromme, the details of the severity are unknown.

Fromme said that officers responded to a call around 8 A.M. reporting of a possible nitrogen tank explosion at the Beechcraft aviation manufacturing facility on 730 North Webb Road.

The blast caused the collapse of a part of plant 3.

Sedgwick County Deputy Fire Chief Daniel Wegner that the explosion happened when a 3-inch liquid nitrogen gas line was severed and although the rupture was contained, the gas still continued to vent.

Officials said that the gas pose no risk to nearby residents.

The cause of the explosion is still under investigation and emergency crews are responding to the explosion with Sedgwick County Sheriff’s Office assisting with the traffic and Sedgwick Fire and Wichita Fire on the scene, CNN reported.

County spokeswoman, Kate Flavin, the state Fire Marshal’s Office and the local lodge of International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers have not responded to calls, messages and emails for more information.

Stephanie Harder, a spokeswoman for Textron Aviation, Beechcraft’s parent company, said that the building where the explosion occurred part of a complex of buildings and houses the business’ composite manufacturing and experimental aircraft, AP News reported.

According to employees, a lot of money has been spent for the past four years to fix up plant 3, which contains highly explosive materials, where majority of the composite work is done and where Textron builds its prototypes.

Cessna already alerted the employees that plant 3 and B15 are being evacuated.

Webb Road was closed from Central to Kellog.