Tennessee authorities identify 16 people killed in blast at explosive plant

Local pastor among victims of huge explosion in rural area where everybody knows each other'

Authorities on Monday identified the 16 people killed in a devastating blast at a rural Tennessee explosives plant on 10 October, as investigators promised a painstaking process to figure out what happened by tracking down pieces of evidence that may now be miles apart.

At a news conference, Chris Davis, the sheriff of Humphreys county, said people in the tight-knit community probably at least knew relatives of the victims killed in the explosion at the plant owned by Accurate Energetic Systems. The company supplies and researches explosives for the military and is a well-known employer in the area.