BASFY BASF SE (QX)

By Friedrich Geiger 

BERLIN-- BASF SE said Tuesday two firefighters had died and one person was still missing a day after explosions at its plant complex and headquarters in Ludwigshafen, Germany.

The chief of the fire department of Ludwigshafen, Peter Friedrich, said he assumed that the missing person was in the port area of the site, which abuts the Rhine River, but firefighters couldn't enter the water because the situation remained dangerous.

Eight people were seriously injured and 17 others suffered minor injuries in the explosions and resulting fires, said BASF executive board member Margret Suckale. The company hasn't yet assessed the financial implications of the disaster and couldn't say whether losses were covered by insurance, she said.

"Production and logistics face large challenges," said Ms. Suckale at a press conference.

The chemical giant suspended operations of the site's steam crackers, which are used to convert hydrocarbons into other chemicals. The suspension interrupted the supply of its raw materials, prompting the company to fully or partially close about 20 other plants, it said. The Ludwigshafen site's port is closed. Ms. Suckale said it would "take time" until the steam crackers resume operations and gave no specifics.

The events started on Monday morning, during work on a pipeline, when a small fire broke out, said plant director Uwe Liebelt, adding that the cause remained unknown. The fire led to an explosion at 11:20 a.m. local time, followed by several other explosions and fires.

Fire department air readings in the region late Monday still detected potentially explosive substances, Mr. Friedrich said.

Write to Friedrich Geiger at friedrich.geiger@wsj.com

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

October 18, 2016 09:15 ET (13:15 GMT)

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