Ohio Plant Explosion Pollution

On July 12, an explosion at the Austin Gunpowder Plant in Vinton County ruptured fuming nitric acid storage tanks resulting in a toxic gas leak and an emergency evacuation of residents within a 2-mile radius. Despite official claims of “manageable contamination,” independent monitoring showed downwind concentrations of hydrogen fluoride exceeding safety limits by a factor of three, potentially causing irreversible damage to soil.