At least 11 injured in explosion at manufacturing plant in Louisville, Kentucky: Police
WHAS
(LOUISVILLE, Ky.) — At least 11 people were reported injured in an explosion at a manufacturing facility in Louisville, Kentucky, police said.
A “hazardous materials incident” was reported Tuesday afternoon at the address of a Givaudan Sense Colour facility, according to the Louisville Metro Emergency Services.
The cause of the explosion, which occurred around 3 p.m. local time, is unknown at this time, officials said.
All those injured are employees of Givaudan Sense Colour, a natural food coloring plant, officials said.
One person who was trapped following the explosion was rescued, while several others were evacuated, officials said.
No fatalities have been reported in the incident.
Residents within two blocks of the facility, located at 1901 Payne St., have been evacuated, officials said.
A shelter-in-place order was also issued for those within a 1-mile radius of the facility but it has since been lifted, officials said.
Agents with Louisville’s division of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives are responding and assisting with the “critical incident,” the agency said.
Air monitoring is clear at this time, officials said.
Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear urged those in the area to follow guidance from local officials “while responders work to secure the area” and said he is “praying for the safety of all involved.”
Givaudan Sense Colour makes colors used in food, and other applications, according to its website.
ABC News’ Ahmad Hemingway contributed to this report.
This is a developing story. Please check back for updates.
(NEW YORK) — Police are investigating the murder of a woman at a high-end resort in the Hamptons.
A staff member at the Shou Sugi Ban House found the victim dead in a guest room on Monday afternoon, Suffolk County police said. The resort is in Water Mill, located between Southhampton and Bridgehampton.
The woman hasn’t been identified, police said, adding that her cause of death will be determined after an autopsy.
No one has been taken into custody.
Police ask anyone with information to call the department at 631-852-6392 or Crime Stoppers at 1-800-220-TIPS.
(FLORIDA KEYS, Fla.) — Hurricane Rafael strengthened to a major Category 3 hurricane as it neared the coast of Cuba on Wednesday afternoon.
Rafael is expected to bring life-threatening storm surge, hurricane-force winds and flash flooding to the western part of the island.
A tropical storm warning is in effect for the Florida Keys, where heavy rain, gusty winds and even tornadoes are possible on Wednesday and into Thursday morning.
Rafael will move into the Gulf of Mexico on Thursday and start weakening.
Rafael isn’t posing a major threat to the U.S. Gulf Coast, but some of the tropical moisture could move toward the coast and add to the rain from an approaching cold front.
Most models predict Rafael sitting in the Gulf into next week and possibly moving southwest toward Mexico.
(NEW YORK) — A New York-based Iranian journalist who was the target of an alleged failed assassination attempt that federal prosecutors say involved an Iranian general said she has “been given a second life.”
Federal prosecutors on Tuesday announced criminal charges against Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps Brig. Gen. Ruhollah Bazghandi in connection with the alleged murder plot against Masih Alinejad, a prolific journalist and human rights activist who has been critical of the Iranian government, in particular the status of women’s rights.
The charges name Bazghandi and six other Iranian operatives who federal prosecutors said plotted to kill Alinejad.
In response to the charges, Alinejad said it was a “beautiful day” in a statement on X on Tuesday while posting a video of herself riding a bicycle, smiling, and saying, “I love my life.”
Asked by ABC News’ Diane Macedo about the joyful video during an interview on ABC News Live on Wednesday, Alinejad said, “I’ve been given a second life. That doesn’t mean I’m going to stay forever, but it is a beautiful day for me and I have to celebrate it because, look, the Iranian regime actually showed that how far they can go.”
“When I read the details, I was like, ‘Wow, the high-ranking member of Revolutionary Guards actually were in charge to kill me?'”
Alinejad said she met with members of the FBI and the Department of Justice about the case.
“When they named Ruhollah Bazghandi, I was screaming out of joy because it is beautiful,” she said. “You have to be a woman from Iran, from the Middle East, to understand when a killer [gets stopped], how it feels.”
“I smiled. But at the same time, I am very sad because I know that this is happening to my women inside Iran,” she continued. “They are facing the same killers every day.”
Alinejad, 48, fled Iran in 2009 in the aftermath of the country’s disputed presidential elections. Her 2018 memoir, “The Wind in My Hair,” detailed how she helped spark an online movement against the compulsory hijab as the founder of the My Stealthy Freedom campaign.
Alinejad, who lives in exile in New York City, said she has moved 21 times between safe houses in the past three years, following an alleged Iranian plot to lure and kidnap her in 2021.
Since at least July 2022, the Bazghandi network sought to assassinate Alinejad, as directed by individuals in Iran, according to the federal indictment, which was released on Tuesday.
The indictment details how the network of operatives surveilled Alinejad and quotes them talking about her in July 2022.
“I’m close to the place now brother I’m getting even closer,” the indictment quotes one operative as saying.
In response, another said, according to the indictment, “OK my brother dear don’t let her out of your sight. Let’s not delay it my brother dear.”
The operative — Khalid Mehdiyev — was disrupted when he was arrested near the victim’s home on July 28, 2022, while in possession of an assault rifle, along with 66 rounds of ammunition, approximately $1,100 in cash, and a black ski mask, according to the indictment.
The operatives were members of an Eastern European crime group allegedly contracted by the Bazghandi network to kill Alinejad, according to the indictment.
“The Islamic Republic hired criminals to do their dirty job on U.S. soil to get away with it, to get away from accountability,” Alinejad said. “But now, the law enforcement actually found the high-ranking members of the Revolutionary Guards that were behind this assassination plot.”
“I’m not carrying weapons. I’m only 45 kilos. But they were trying to kill me,” she said.
Tehran has not responded to the recent charges.
The FBI released a wanted poster for Bazghandi, who is based in Iran and is being sought on charges including murder-for-hire and conspiracy to commit murder-for-hire.
FBI Director Christopher Wray said in a statement Tuesday that the indictment “exposes the full extent of Iran’s plot to silence an American journalist for criticizing the Iranian regime” and that the FBI will “work with our partners here and abroad to hold accountable those who target Americans.”
ABC News’ Aaron Katersky contributed to this report.
