Neglected structural deficiencies at a Winston-Salem s Weaver fertilizer plant may have heightened the risk for what fire officials feared at the time could have been one of the most destructive explosions in the nation’s history.
Authorities have called for the evacuation of about 6,000 people, including Wake Forest University students and more than 200 inmates from a nearby prison and urged residents to stay indoors as the fire continues to burn.
Winston-Salem fire officials are taking extensive safety measures in the wake of a massive fire at the Winston Weaver Co.’s fertilizer plant that prompted an effort to evacuate thousands of