Explosion at Arkansas weapon manufacturer leaves 2 people injured, 1 missing

A morning explosion at General Dynamics, a defense company that produces aircraft guns, missiles and a variety of ammunition in south Arkansas, left at least two people injured and one missing.

The explosion occurred around 8:15 a.m. Wednesday near Camden, a city of about 10,000 people in Ouachita County. One person is known to have been transported in an ambulance dispatched from El Dorado, which is about 35 miles south.

Information at this time is limited. A spokesperson for General Dynamics Ordnance and Tactical Systems said the company was working with first responders and cooperating with authorities during an investigation. An update is expected Thursday, spokesperson Berkley Whaley said.

Whaley described the incident as one “involving pyrotechnics,” and later confirmed it was an explosion. She did not clarify where in Camden’s nearly 900,000 square-feet manufacturing and storage space the explosion occurred or describe any damages.

Whaley is not based at the Camden location.

A dispatcher from the Calhoun County Sheriff’s Office, which is the enforcement body where the incident occurred, said General Dynamics has its own team of first responders and no assistance has been requested of the sheriff’s office.

City authorities in Camden were unable to provide any information about the incident Wednesday afternoon. The Arkansas Division of Emergency Management also did not have an update on the situation and forwarded all questions about the explosion to General Dynamics’ spokesperson.

General Dynamics has 28 locations in the United States and Canada.

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