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Evacuations follow ethanol plant explosion in Bartow

News Channel 8 by PAUL LAMISON

The alarm came in just before 10:30 a.m. at the 1705 Mann Road complex, authorities said. The complex includes Peace River Citrus.

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TBO.com

Published: April 24, 2009

Updated: 04/24/2009 12:19 pm

Polk County emergency workers responded to a call about an explosion in Bartow this morning.

The alarm came in just before 10:30 a.m. at the industrial complex at 1705 Mann Road, authorities said. The complex includes Peace River Citrus and Ethanol of Florida.

Polk County Fire Rescue along with the Bartow Fire Department, Polk Emergency Medical Service and emergency management responded. The county's hazardous materials team was also dispatched.

Firefighters found some confusion when they arrived but determined that a tank containing alcohol exploded near the rear of an ethanol plant, officials said. The public was not threatened, they said. No injures were immediately reported.

The ethanol plant, which employs seven people, was evacuated, along with an undisclosed number of employees from the Peace River Citrus plant.

About 150 students attending classes at a nearby agricultural center were also evacuated.

The situation was deemed too dangerous for firefighters to approach the burning tank this morning, so they were allowing the fire to burn itself out, officials said. They were also closely monitoring two nearby tanks.

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