It’s been nearly 10 years since 15 people were killed and 300 others were injured after a fertilizer plant in West, Texas exploded.
Only a few thousand people live in the city of West, which is north of Waco."Yet, you have brought us to a place of abundance," First Baptist Church of West Pastor John Crowder said."They tell me that I was the closest one to the actual explosion that survived the explosion," West Fire Department Chaplain Robert Payne recalled.There was a large explosion 22 minutes later, which Payne does not remember.
"I don’t remember anything about it. My memory cuts out before the explosion occurred and I didn’t come to until the next day," he said."So many of our firemen who do remember it are still to this day having a hard time dealing with it," Payne said.A new memorial dedicated to the first responders who died in a 2013 fertilizer plant fire and explosion in West was unveiled in the Central Texas town Saturday morning.
The impact stretched wide, as more than 500 homes were destroyed and a 93-foot wide and 12-feet deep crater was left behind.Ultimately, the ATF ruled that the fire was intentionally set, but no one has ever been charged. There’s still a $50,000 reward for information leading to an arrest and indictment. On Saturday, a larger sum of money - $100,000 - was donated to the West, TX Foundation from the National Fallen Firefighters Foundation.People like Epperson remember rushing to a nearby school to make sure their kids were safe.Saturday, her daughter was part of a choir singing to uplift people who are still feeling the pain.
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