One person airlifted after Anderson Co. plant explosion

One person was airlifted to the hospital after an explosion Friday at Techtronic Industries in Anderson County, authorities said.

Firefighters responded to the facility on 1428 Pearman Dairy Road about 12:30 p.m. when a generator malfunctioned during testing, said Anderson County Assistant Fire Chief Brian Moon.

The explosion happened in the facility's product test lab, Moon said.

He said one person was injured and airlifted to the hospital. The details of those injuries haven't been released.

The building was evacuated with assistance from the Anderson County Sheriff's Office, said Sheriff's Office Lt. Sheila Cole.

Many of the employees were out at lunch at the time, she said.

The explosion caused "major structural damage" to part of the roof and building, but there was little fire, Moon said.

The plant is also commonly known as the Ryobi plant.

Hong Kong-based TechTronic makes an array of power tools and equipment under various brand names, including Ryobi, Homelite, Milwaukee, Dirt Devil and Hoover, with 65 percent of its sales in North America.

The company employs about 1,000 people in the Upstate, most of them at the headquarters for its power equipment division on Pearman Dairy Road.

Staff writer Rudolph Bell contributed.

This story was originally published April 8, 2016 at 7:06 PM with the headline "One person airlifted after Anderson Co. plant explosion."