Authorities have identified the 16 people killed in a devastating blast at a rural Tennessee explosives plant on 10 October, as investigators promised a painstaking process to work out what happened by tracking down pieces of evidence that may now be miles apart.
At a news conference, Chris Davis, the sheriff of Humphreys county, said people in the tight-knit community probably at least knew relatives of the victims killed in the explosion at the plant owned by Accurate Energetic Systems. The company supplies and researches explosives for the military and is a well-known employer in the area.
Even as people turned to Sunday worship services to process their grief, one congregation was mourning the loss of their pastor in the explosion. Trent Stewart was the pastor at the Log church in Waverly, where Sunday school and worship was cancelled this weekend and replaced with a time of prayer in the sanctuary, the institution’s associate pastor, Charlie Musick, posted on social media.
The sheriffs of Humphreys and Hickman counties read off the names of the victims at Monday’s news conference. The others were: Jason Adams; Billy Baker; Christopher Clark; James Cook; LaTeisha Mays; Melinda Rainey; Steven Wright; Erick Anderson; Adam Boatman; Mindy Clifton; Jeremy Moore; Melissa Stafford; Rachel Woodall; and Donald Yowell.
Authorities said they are working to clear the area of hazards, including explosives, and to identify remains. Matthew Belew, acting special agent in charge of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, said some of the relevant evidence is spread out over miles, comparing the investigation to putting a puzzle back together.
Accurate Energetic Systems’ 1,300-acre complex in a heavily wooded area of middle Tennessee is made up of eight different specialised production buildings and a lab. It straddles the Hickman and Humphreys county line in unincorporated Bucksnort, about 60 miles south-west of Nashville, and employs 115 people.
