Photos, videos of Texas fertilizer plant explosion

Watch raw video of the explosion above, followed by a father describing the blast.

TORONTO – An explosion at a fertilizer plant in the town of West, Texas injured scores of people and levelled buildings for blocks in every direction Wednesday night.

The explosion happened around 7 p.m. local time, sending a fireball and a massive plume of smoke high into the sky, shocking local residents.

Here is raw video showing a different angle of the explosion:

The blast could be heard as far as 72 kilometres away, according to reports.

Texas Department of Public Safety spokesman D.L. Wilson said just after midnight that an unknown number of people had died and it will take quite some time before authorities will know the full extent of the loss of life.

Get breaking National news

For news impacting Canada and around the world, sign up for breaking news alerts delivered directly to you when they happen.

Sign up for breaking National newsletter Sign Up

By providing your email address, you have read and agree to Global News' Terms and Conditions and Privacy Policy.

This video shows a mother and son who witnessed the blast describing their experience:

Here’s a look at the blast and devastation through various social media platforms.

Here is the raw mobile phone footage of the plant explosion shown above: (volume, language warning)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ROrpKx3aIjA

Shortly after midnight Eastern time, a Live Leak user posted scanner audio of emergency responders. In the video, a first responder calls for “every ambulance we have” and describes the scene as “a bomb went off in here, it’s pretty bad. We got a lot of firemen down.”

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8G2upxAUk3Q

Here’s a video of the plume of smoke from a fair distance away. Later in the footage, the  pair drive through a neighbourhood close to the blast site. Debris can be seen on the road and thick black smoke. “I don’t even recognize this, I have no idea where I am,” a man said. (Language warning)

Reaction on Twitter:

KWTX in Waco, Texas is reporting on a possible explosion at a the West fertilizer plant just off interstate 35 that has left an unknown number of people injured.

http://storify.com/globaltvnews/waco-fertilizer-plant-explosion

-with files from The Associated Press