KS - Three dead, three missing in Atchison grain elevator explosion

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The elevator exploded just before 7 p.m. Saturday. Two others are in critical condition at KU Med Center with severe burns.

Rescue efforts suspended at Atchison grain elevator (Kansas City Star)
ATCHISON, Kan. | Crews temporarily suspended their search today for three people missing since an explosion at a Kansas grain elevator that killed three workers and left two critically injured with severe burns.

Atchison City Manager Trey Cocking said officials with Bartlett Grain Co. decided it was unsafe for anyone to be inside the facility until later Sunday, when some heavy equipment was expected to arrive to assist them.

The explosion blew off a chunk of a grain distribution building that sits directly above the elevator, and Cocking said officials were fearful the building could fall on top of rescue crews amid the search. The efforts were already called off overnight because of darkness.
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The explosion could be seen and felt across Atchison, shaking homes and businesses up to four miles away. The cause was not immediately known, though grain elevator accidents can occur after grain dust becomes suspended in the air and turns explosive in the right conditions.
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more at link above

Three dead, three missing in grain elevator explosion (Atchison Daily Globe)
 
Death toll is six; two critically burned are in hospital.

All three missing men found dead in search of Atchison grain elevator (kansas city.com)
ATCHISON, Kan. | All three men who were missing after a grain elevator explosion on Saturday were found dead this morning.

Searchers found the bodies of 21-year-old Curtis Field, 34-year-old Travis Keil and a third man who officials did not identify. On Sunday, officials confirmed the deaths of three other men — John Burke, Ryan Federinko and Chad Roberts.
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Meanwhile, family and friends of those killed and injured in the explosion also gathered at the scene.

“This is one of the few places I can come to have closure,” said Alicia Cobleigh, 19, whose fiancé, Chad Roberts, 20, died in the explosion. “I know he was happy here.”
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more at link; Atchison is about 50 miles NW of Kansas City
 
How horrible, those poor men. Prayers for the survivors to recover as fully as possible and for those who lost their lives.
 
This is so sad. Although I was sure the missing men were dead, I was still hoping for a miracle.
 
Is it normal for 48 hours to pass with no word on what caused the explosion?

(Grain elevators are quite outside my areas of experience.)
 
Is it normal for 48 hours to pass with no word on what caused the explosion?

(Grain elevators are quite outside my areas of experience.)
I think it is. I should know my grain elevators better as I've lived in many towns (including this one! yikes!) with them. Essentially, it's almost always a grain dust explosion so I imagine they're making darned sure. Pretty stiff regulations and yet they still explode.
 
I think it is. I should know my grain elevators better as I've lived in many towns (including this one! yikes!) with them. Essentially, it's almost always a grain dust explosion so I imagine they're making darned sure. Pretty stiff regulations and yet they still explode.

Pardon my stupidity, but what causes grain dust to explode?

(I'm not sure how to google this.)
 
Pardon my stupidity, but what causes grain dust to explode?

(I'm not sure how to google this.)
Its, uh, high level of explosivity? lol - I have no real idea either, having nodded off during both physics and chemistry classes in high school, then having kept them at a safe distance in college. Here's the Wiki, has a section on explosions: Grain Elevators.
 

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