5 people killed and 6 still missing in Pennsylvania chocolate factory explosion

Tribune Content Agency

PHILADELPHIA — Five people were killed and six people remain missing after an explosion at a West Reading chocolate factory Friday afternoon that sent a column of black smoke into the sky and rattled the windows of homes four blocks away.

It’s not clear what caused the explosion, said L. Paul Vezzetti, a spokesman for the Pennsylvania Emergency Management Agency, which was notified of the explosion around 5 p.m. Friday and is assisting with the aftermath. The company, R.M. Palmer, specializes in hollow chocolate Easter bunnies; the explosion occurred just two weeks before Easter.

“I was sitting by the window I heard a powerful explosion, felt a puff of air touch the back of my neck, the windows rattled and blinds shook,” wrote Jayson Messner, who said he lives approximately four blocks away from the factory, in a Facebook post on Saturday morning. Photos Messner posted show black and gray smoke filling the sky, bright orange flames and an enormous mound of rubble and debris surrounded by brick buildings still standing.

Reading Hospital received a total of eight patients, according to a spokeswoman for the hospital. Of those, one was transferred to Lehigh Valley Hospital, two have been admitted in fair condition, and the others have been discharged.

R.M. Palmer Co. is one of the largest candymakers in the country. Evan Prochniak, CEO of Philadelphia-based candy manufacturer Zitner’s, guessed that because of its large scale, R.M. Palmer had likely wrapped up production of its Easter candies in mid-February and was in a slower phase of production when the explosion occurred.

“It’s a good company with good products and good people. They’re just really, really nice people that are leaders in the industry,” said Prochniak, who has met representatives from R.M. Palmer at national candy conventions.

West Reading, a small town about 65 miles northwest of Philadelphia, was once next door to the Berkshire Knitting Mills, which was the largest stockings and hosiery manufacturer in the world in the early 20th century. These days, about 20% of the population works in health care and related fields. Politically, the area is a blue dot in a sea of red. R.M. Palmer, less than a mile from the former knitting mills, was founded in 1948 and employs 850 people, according to its website.

“I’m asking for continued cooperation from the public to avoid the area,” Mayor Samantha Kaag wrote in a statement posted to Facebook. “Our deepest sympathies are with the family and friends of those who have been affected.”

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