La Salle chemical plant fire: Carus Chemical hosts public meeting about January explosion
La Salle chemical plant fire: Carus Chemical hosts public meeting about January explosion
A massive chemical explosion back in January stunned the community of La Salle, which is 90 miles southwest of Chicago. On Wednesday night, the leaders of Carus Chemical are holding the second of two community meetings to hear from the public.
La SALLE, Ill. - A massive chemical explosion back in January stunned the community of La Salle, which is 90 miles southwest of Chicago.
On Wednesday night, the leaders of Carus Chemical will hold the second of two community meetings to hear from the public.
The meeting starts at 6 p.m. at the La Salle Peru Township High School auditorium. Doors will open at 5:30 p.m. Carus still has a hotline open for concerned community members.
The images were remarkable from that day in January. Cell phone images showed the Carus Plant exploding and black smoke filling the air.
Several residents shared the images with FOX 32 that morning. Shockingly, all the employees of Carus managed to escape unharmed.
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As for the cause, Carus officials report that it was friction by a forklift picking up a damaged package of potassium permanganate. The chemical ignited, causing the explosion. Carus produces a chemical to treat drinking water.
There have been cleanup efforts since then, and some in the community still have concerns.
Many in the community are saying that they have not been seeing health issues and while it is taking some time, Carus has been working with paying residents for out-of-pocket insurance costs.