1 patient discharged, 2 critical after ammunition plant fire

RADFORD, Va. – One of three patients being treated for injuries sustained during a fire at the main propellant-manufacturing facility for the U.S. Department of Defence has been discharged from a North Carolina hospital.

A spokeswoman for Wake Forest Baptist Medical Center said Wednesday that one patient injured earlier this week at the Radford Army Ammunition Plant had been discharged and the other two remained in critical condition.

All production at the facility in southwest Virginia has been suspended while an investigation is ongoing.

Officials say the flash fire occurred in a nitrocellulose drying facility Monday evening.

The plant is owned by the government and operated by defence contractor BAE Systems. A BAE Systems spokesman has declined to identify the victims or describe what kind of damage the building sustained.