Cops Near Detroit Tell Locals: 'Please, Please, Please Stay Inside'

Fire at industrial facility causes explosions that rock suburban Detroit
By Newser Editors and Wire Services
Posted Mar 5, 2024 1:00 AM CST
'We Cannot Stress Enough the Danger That Is Happening'
Fire departments battle an industrial fire near 15 Mile Road and Groesbeck Highway in the Detroit suburb of Clinton Township on Monday, March 4, 2024.   (Robin Buckson/Detroit News via AP)

A fire raging at an industrial facility caused multiple explosions that rocked suburban Detroit on Monday night and sent debris shooting far into the air, prompting police to implore residents to stay inside, the AP reports. The debris fell as far as a mile away, the Clinton Township Police Department said on Facebook. Authorities said they didn't know exactly what was burning or the potential health effects from it. "We can not stress enough the danger that is happening right now," one police post said. "Please, please, please stay inside and out of the vicinity." One woman says she heard the explosions from eight miles away.

Police said the fire was burning near 15 Mile Road and Groesbeck Highway. News helicopter videos showed a massive, bright orange area of fire with bursts of flames within the blaze that looked like explosions. Macomb County Executive Mark Hackel told WDIV-TV late Monday that the explosions started around 9pm at the Select Distributors plant and that Clinton Township officers and firefighters immediately responded. "They understand some type of CO2 or propane explosions were taking place at the facility, and again, it was just continuous explosions, as well as the fire," Hackel said. After 11pm, he told the news outlet that the fire had been contained. The air quality is being tested. It wasn't immediately known if anyone was injured.

(More Michigan stories.)

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