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Explosion at GM Tech Center in Warren, Michigan

The GM Tech Center in Warren.
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GM's Technical Center in Warren, Michigan.

Update 2:35 p.m.

The Detroit News reports that Warren Mayor James Fouts toured GM's Tech Center after the exposion. He said he had a "chemical taste in his mouth" when touring the site.

"I just want to say how very fortunate we are that only one person was seriously injured," said Fouts, who toured the site after the fire was extinguished. "There were 80 people in that building, but only one person received a possible concussion and some chemical burns, from what I've been told." ...According to Fouts, the building housing the research lab received considerable damage.

Fouts said three "very large windows were blown out and thick, fortified doors were forced open by the blast."

The News reports that a GM official said the hospitalized worker "is expected to make a full recovery and that the injuries are not life threatening."

1:27 p.m.
GM says the explosion was unrelated to the Chevrolet Volt or any other production vehicle.

"The incident was related to extreme testing on a prototype battery," officials said in a statement.

11:32 a.m.

There was an explosion at the General Motors Technical Center in Warren, Michigan this morning.

The Detroit Free Press reports on one person who was seriously injured in the blast:

A woman working in a battery research laboratory was taken to St. John Hospital and Medical Center in Detroit, Warren Fire Commissioner Wilburt (Skip) McAdams said. “She is conscious; she’s in a lot of pain. She’s a ‘Priority 2,’ which means she has life-threatening injuries,” McAdams said.

More from the Detroit News:

One person was transported to a hospital and four others were being evaluated Wednesday after a lithium battery exploded at a battery research lab at the General Motors Technical Center. "We are aware of an incident this morning about 8:45 a.m. in one of the laboratories at the Alternative Energy Center at the General Motors Technical Center in Warren, Mich.," GM said in a release. "Fire and emergency authorities were called to the scene. The building was evacuated. All employees have been accounted for. We are aware of five employees being evaluated on scene by medical personal and only one employee is being further treated. The incident is still under investigation by GM and the Warren authorities. Any information or discussion of the nature of the work in the lab or cause of the incident is entirely speculative and cannot be confirmed at this time."

Mark Brush was the station's Digital Media Director. He succumbed to a year-long battle with glioblastoma, an aggressive brain cancer, in March 2018. He was 49 years old.
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