Wire reporting: (AP, via Local 10)

An explosion and fire at the Loveland Products plant in Greenville, Mississippi, on Wednesday morning sent black smoke over the city and led officials to tell nearby residents to shelter in place^2,23,25.

The City of Greenville said the blast occurred about 7:10 a.m. at the facility, formerly known as Platte Chemical, and that preliminary information from plant management pointed to a fire involving a herbicide chemical in a hot box^2,23.

Washington County Deputy Emergency Management Director Sara Moreland Hester, who is also a local firefighter, said no injuries were immediately reported^22,25.

Gray Television stations, citing Washington County officials, said firefighters contained the flames and used decontamination protocols because of possible chemical exposure².

The Mississippi Emergency Management Agency told residents inside Highway 182 from Beauchamp to Kuehn Road and along VFW between those roads to close windows and doors, shut off ventilation and stay indoors because of potentially hazardous smoke²³.

Gray stations later reported that officials lifted the shelter-in-place order and confirmed no injuries².

Hester said midmorning that the fire was controlled but not fully out, WREG reported; Local 10, carrying AP copy, later said she reported the fire was out and crews were wrapping up^23,22.

Responding agencies included the Greenville, Riverside, Leland and Greenville Mid Delta Airport fire departments, along with Pafford and the Washington County Emergency Operations Center, WREG reported, citing WJTV²³.

The Mississippi Department of Environmental Quality sent staff and an air-monitoring contractor to check for air-quality effects^22,23,25.

Nutrien, Loveland’s parent company, said no one was injured, the fire was being managed and site leaders were working with first responders^23,22.

Greenville Mayor Errick Simmons said, “Our first priority is the safety of our residents, our first responders, and everyone working at or near the facility”^2,23.

The cause of the blast remained under investigation².