Police probe explosion at Kentucky Dippin’ Dots factory that injured 10 people

Published 12:18 pm Thursday, July 22, 2021

Kentucky authorities on Thursday were investigating the cause of an explosion at a Paducah Dippin’ Dots factory that injured 10 people.

Paducah Police received a call about the explosion at 4:03 p.m. on Wednesday, police spokesperson Robin Newberry told The Paducah Sun. The explosion happened as a truck was unloading liquid nitrogen at the facility, but police are not yet sure what caused the blast. Ten people were taken to local hospitals, but Newberry did not know the severity of their injuries.

Newberry said the building is owned by Dippin’ Dots but is not one where they manufacture ice cream. Instead it is used to manufacture ingredients for a third-party company.

Paducah Fire Chief Steve Kyle told the paper they do not expect to have any information on the cause of the explosion before Thursday afternoon. Fire crews at the scene were “working through the investigative process and making sure the scene was safe,” Kyle said.

In 2019, an explosion in a production area of a separate Paducah manufacturing facility injured four people.