Explosion at a chemical plant in Spain prompts regional health alert
May 15, 2025
By The Associated Press
Smoke billows an industrial estate after an explosion at a chemical plant in Alcala de Guadaira near Seville, Spain, Wednesday, May 14, 2025. (Rocio Ruz /Europa Press via AP)
By Joseph Wilson
An explosion at a chemical plant near the Spanish city of Seville on Wednesday sent a huge column of thick black smoke into the air and prompted authorities to warn residents to stay indoors.
Regional authorities for Andalusia reported two people were injured as a result of the blast. One plant worker suffered light burns and a firefighter felt ill, authorities said without giving more details.
It is the latest in a series of apparently unrelated incidents recently impacting Spain’s infrastructure, including a nationwide power outage that also hit Portugal.
The fire prompted officials to send messages to the mobile phones of some 25,000 residents within a radius of three kilometers (1.8 miles) of the explosion recommending that they wear face masks or close their windows.
The explosion occurred midday in an industrial park in the municipality of Alcalá de Guadaíra, about 16 kilometers east of Seville’s city center. Emergency services cleared personnel from the plant site.
Authorities have not said what chemicals were involved in explosion.
Spanish state broadcaster TVE and other media, including the local Diario de Sevilla newspaper, reported that the explosion occurred on the premises of Plainsur, a company that packages and distributes chemical products. The company occupies some 11,000 m2 at the industrial plant, including a large warehouse, according to its website.
It is the second fire at a chemical plant in Spain in recent days.
On Saturday, a fire at a chemical factory in northeastern Spain forced emergency services to issue health warnings to 150,000 residents and stay-indoors orders for five nearby towns.