Five people are missing, one dead and 16 others are injured after an explosion rocked a chemical plant in Leverkusen. Operators of the site say it's not yet clear what caused the blast, Deutsche Welle reports.
A blast followed by a fire hit an industrial park in the western German city of Leverkusen Tuesday, leaving several injured.
Germany's Federal Office for Civil Protection and Disaster Assistance classified the explosion at the Chempark site operated by Currenta as "an extreme threat,'' according to Germany's dpa news agency.
Currenta said the explosion occurred at a tank farm that is part of its facility and that the fire had been put out. It added that a search was underway for five employees who were missing. Sixteen others were injured in the blast, four of them seriously.
Chempark urged residents of Leverkusen, which lies 20 kilometers (13 miles) north of Cologne, to "go indoors and keep doors and windows closed."
Police in Cologne tweeted that they were closing several motorways because of "major damage."
Firefighters and pollution detection vehicles have been dispatched to the scene.
Residents said the blast could be heard from some distance, with some reporting that the force of the explosion had rattled their windows.
It is unclear what caused the blast.