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Over 100 Firefighters Battle Fire At a Columbus Paint Plant — Details Revealed On the Tragedy

Jené Liebenberg
By Jené Liebenberg
Apr 09, 2021
08:50 A.M.

Columbus Division of Fire shared that firefighters were met by fleeing employees of a paint plant engulfed in flames when they arrived at the scene.

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The Columbus Division of Fire reported that they fought a fire that had broken out at Majestic Paints, a paint plant. When the first responders arrived at the scene, employees were rushing out of the burning building, with five of them injured.

Two of the Majestic Paints workers were trapped inside the building, and firefighters had to work to extract them from the dangerous environment. They were transported to the hospital in critical condition but are now stable.

Photo of a firefighter in front of a fire. | Source: Pexels/ Pixabay

Photo of a firefighter in front of a fire. | Source: Pexels/ Pixabay

ONE UNACCOUNTED

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The authorities revealed that by 5:15 am, they had control over the situation. After putting out the massive fire, which triggered a second alarm fire, they still had one person who they could not locate and was unaccounted for. The social media post reads:

"We still have one person not accounted for, but we have been through all of the building."

It has since been discovered that the missing person was 44-year-old Wendell Light, whose body was discovered in the rubble after the fire. He did not survive the engulfing flames, and the rescue staff could not locate him amidst the fire.

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IN THE AFTERMATH

The Columbus Division Fire warned that the Ohio community will still see black smoke in the surrounding area in the aftermath of the explosion because they allowed a few of the products to continue to burn out.

The father of the little boy who died managed to escape the flames but was unable to get to his son to save him.

The force of the explosion resulted in damage to the building's structures which made the first responders' access difficult. They had to navigate through the fallen ceilings and burned furniture to get their job done.

EXTENSIVE SUPPORT

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The extent of the fire resulted in more than 100 firefighters having to battle the fiery mass. Hazmat teams were also called to the scene in an effort to contain the explosion.

The company that owns the paint plant is now working alongside the authorities to investigate the damaging explosion that caused serious injuries and took a life. CEO Andrew Smith released a statement saying:

“We are committed to uncovering the details behind this tragic accident. The welfare of our employees is of the utmost importance to our family.”

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ANOTHER FIRE

The Bronx community also suffered a major blow when an explosion injured nine people. The explosion resulted from an issue with the gas. Among the nine that sustained injuries were six children.

One of the adults and one of the children are in critical condition after the gas explosion that occurred on Paulding Avenue in the Bronx. The fire caused walls to be blown out.

A home in New Jersey also caught alight taking the life of a seven-year-old. Several other individuals also sustained serious injuries as a result of the flames.

The father of the little boy who died managed to escape the flames but was unable to get to his son to save him. The flames jumped over to their neighbor's roof which also caused extensive damage.

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