16 dead in Bucksnort explosives plant blast in Tennessee

An explosion that obliterated a military explosives plant in rural middle Tennessee on Friday morning killed 16 people and leveled a building at the Accurate Energetic Systems campus, authorities said, leaving investigators to painstakingly comb through a volatile, charred site for evidence. The blast, which occurred about 7:45 a.m. local time at the company’s Bucksnort facility near McEwen, was felt for miles and scattered debris over an area officials described as extensive.

Humphreys County Sheriff Chris Davis said investigators have confirmed the deaths and that rapid DNA testing is being used to identify remains. "It breaks my heart to tell you that," he said as officials notified victims’ families. The Tennessee Bureau of Investigation has been using rapid DNA processes to compare samples from relatives with recovered remains, and federal teams from the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives and the FBI have been deployed to assist the probe.

Accurate Energetic Systems operates a sprawling, 1,300 acre campus of eight production buildings and a laboratory, according to state records, and supplies explosives and munitions to military and commercial customers....