Video shows moment of deadly candy factory explosion

At least two people are dead following an explosion at the R.M. Palmer Company facility in West Reading, Pennsylvania. The cause for the explosion is unknown and remains under investigation. CNN's Polo Sandoval has the latest. #CNN #News

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mI_UNAJQJmk

37 comments

  1. Wow! So sorry for those affected. Sending hope and condolences. 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿🇺🇸

  2. I’m guessing here, a few years back at a candy factory, a Forklift entered an area where Stratch was used to coat candy, a spark shot off the electric motor and caused a huge explosion, just saying.

  3. This is more common than you might think. Glucose or starch in fine powder in the air is highly explosive. I’d guess something went wrong with the air extraction and filtration, maybe

    1. ​@Finbarr Saunders it’s an opinion. Complete with the words ” guess” and ” maybe”

    2. There wasn’t a lot of flame in that explosion so it could have been a boiler explosion. It had one skinny column of flame and a lot of debris

    3. The “calories” in food represent energy, after all. So yes, lots of foods are combustible under the right conditions.

      Myself, I must admit to somewhat mixed feelings about this. On the one hand, it’s a tragedy that people died. On the other hand, chocolate factory–what a way to go …

      Am I a bad person?

  4. Yikes. Wonder if the bldg structure or pipes were old and it was a gas explosion? A lot of factories are still housed in unsafe structures. My heart goes out to all people who were working there when the explosion occurred 🥺🙏🏻😢

    1. You know it was from the looks of the building it does look pretty old and they said it may had a gas leak ! All the negligence is coming out !Railroads, Bridges , Buildings but we have money to take care of other Nation’s!

    2. Current and former employees are speaking out about the odor of gas in the factory for some time now…months, apparently.

    3. @Patricia Cobb We also have money to take care of our own country but corporate owners would rather not spend the money and contractors usually rip off the federal government by not efficiently completing projects. You really should expand your simple mind.

    4. You mean to say that in America gas pipes in buildings are not regularly checked and maintained? Yikes indeed.

  5. if i should guess – looks like there is gas burning in the later pictures and in the explosion something like a steampipe or heatexchanger seem to go flying with steam coming out.. so either a steam-tank ruptured and ripped of a gaspipe or a gas explosion ripped the steam-pipes.
    sad day for a small town, in my homecity 40yrs ago a big explosion happened to in a chemical plant. I worked there many years later, and they really had the highest priority to safety.

  6. Holy crap! That explosion was a real gob stopper! Never store too much popping candy in the same place kids, it might hariblow!

  7. Thank you so much for pointing out the moment of explosion”Right there” ,otherwise I would have missed it, your detailed reporting is very well appreciated.😮

  8. Rules and regulation are not killing business, the lack of is what’s doing it. I hope the missing are found alive

  9. Wow! That’s terrible. I would image a building that old might have a gas leakage problem. Prayers for all affected. ❤ GOD Bless Everyone

  10. holyfk!! that is an insane blast !!!!! you would think this happens at a weapons factory – but not a place where it makes chocolate !!! insane !!! rip workers !!!!

  11. Palmer Candy- makes a lot of Easter candy. So sorry to hear people were killed in this explosion. Hope they find the others alive.

  12. I live in the area. Saw the mushroom cloud after the blast. Shook that whole part of the city. My condolences to all affected from this… Really shook up Reading n West Reading. ❤ GOD Bless Everyone

    1. I’m in Exeter. Didn’t see the mushroom cloud but sure felt the blast. This is awful. I’m glad everyone is now accounted for…obviously sad 7 are no longer with us 🙁

  13. Omg that was a huge blast, hope it was just an incident not otherwise, and hope there are more survivals ❤ GOD Bless Everyone

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