“`html
In Bucksnort, Tennessee, a somber atmosphere has settled as residents spend a chilly autumn night reflecting on a message spraypainted on a roadside barrier: “Pray for the AES families”.
On Saturday, the community gathered for a candlelit vigil outside Maple Valley Baptist Church, following a devastating explosion at Accurate Energetic Systems (AES), a local explosives factory, which left 16 individuals presumed dead.
Deacon Danny Bates addressed the approximately 40 attendees, emphasizing the profound impact on the close-knit community of Hickman and Humphreys Counties: “It’s not huge, so that’s a lot of people to lose in an instant.” Attendees offered solace to one another and sang hymns, including “It Is Well With My Soul”.
“It was just another day at work, and then in an instant, they were gone,” Deacon Bates lamented. “We have unanswered questions.”
Jerri Newcombe, a vigil attendee, shared that her friend of over 20 years was among the victims. Their bond began when Newcombe’s granddaughter and the victim’s daughter became close friends as young children.
“They grew up together—we were in each other’s homes,” Newcombe recounted to the BBC at the vigil. “We celebrated birthdays together. It’s just surreal, because she’s gone and her babies are hurting,” she added, referring to the victim’s children and grandchildren.
Local law enforcement has not publicly identified the victims, all of whom authorities presume to have perished in the blast.
Ms. Newcombe described her friend as “full of life.” “She was the type of person that could make you laugh over anything, but you didn’t cross her either, or she would tear into you,” Ms. Newcombe shared through tears and laughter, comforted by her granddaughter.
Residents describe Bucksnort as a tight-knit town with limited cell service, where a gas station, prominently displaying a Confederate flag, serves as a local gathering spot. The tragedy has deeply affected the community as they mourn the loss of family, friends, neighbors, and coworkers.
Hopes for positive news dwindled after the Friday morning explosion, which shook homes throughout the area, filled the sky with smoke, and prompted a massive response of state and national first responders to the typically quiet community nestled behind forests along a busy motorway.
After nearly two days without finding survivors and with the explosion site remaining hazardous, even Humphreys County Sheriff Chris Davis, who had previously expressed optimism, announced the shift to a recovery strategy.
“At some point in time, we have got to rip off the Band-Aid,” Davis stated, holding back tears at news conferences. “We are dealing with remains.”
Hickman County Sheriff Jason Craft informed the BBC on Saturday night that rapid DNA analysis was ongoing. However, following a search by 300 first responders, authorities were confident in their assessment and notified families that their loved ones were likely deceased.
The cause of the explosion remains undetermined, and agents from the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) are conducting an investigation. ATF official Brice McCracken told the BBC that it could take up to a month for federal investigators to access the main site of the explosion.
Officials have stated that the volatile nature of the explosive materials has complicated the emergency response. Controlled detonations to secure the site are anticipated in the coming days.
Tiffany Story shared that her cousin was among the victims, along with four other individuals she knew, including someone she had once babysat.
“Everybody knows everybody here,” Mrs. Story said emotionally to the BBC. “With everybody being so close, it’s very comforting to have family. That’s what we are—whether [by] blood, not blood, this whole community is family.”
“There’s probably never gonna be any answers” to the tragedy, she expressed.
Janie Brown also said she knew victims at the site. “They were loved by their families and by the community,” she remarked outside another prayer vigil at the Hurricane Chapel Free Will Baptist Church in nearby McEwen.
“It’s just a sad, sad day,” she lamented.
Residents informed the BBC that Accurate Energetic Systems (AES) employed approximately 80 workers and provided one of the few well-paying private sector jobs in the area. For many, the plant was known as a reliable first job for themselves or close friends.
A recent job posting advertised an entry-level manual labor position with a salary of $19 per hour, more than double the state’s minimum wage of $7.25.
The factory has faced previous challenges, but none on the scale of this recent tragedy.
In 2014, an explosion at the company resulted in one fatality. A workplace safety inspection in 2019 led to relatively minor financial penalties, which the company resolved, according to online records.
Residents who spoke with the BBC generally expressed positive sentiments toward the company, and local law enforcement indicated that they had received no prior reports of unsafe working conditions.
Hurricane Chapel Free Will Baptist Church Pastor Tim Ferris commended his congregation’s response to the tragedy.
“One thing about a small community is that when something like this happens, they rally around each other, and they come close to be the hands and the feet of Jesus, to administer to these people, to care for them, provide for them.
And that’s a wonderful thing,” he concluded.
Beijing says it could introduce “countermeasures” if the US President imposes an an additional 100% tariff on Chinese imports.
The West African state says it has introduced an “identical visa programme” for US travellers.
Four people were killed and at least 20 injured, several critically, after a shooting at a crowded bar in South Carolina on Sunday.
Whipsnade Parish Council has held a memorial service to honour Major Glenn Hagenbuch 82 years on.
The president’s directive would ensure US military personnel don’t miss a scheduled paycheque next week.
“`