Xinhua Agency, New York, October 11th. Local officials in Tennessee said on the 11th that no survivors were found at the explosion site of the explosive factory in Hickman County, the state, and all 16 missing people can be presumed dead. The current focus of work has shifted from search and rescue to confirming the identity of the deceased.

The explosion occurred at around 7:45 local time on the 10th, at the junction of Hickman and Humphreys Counties, Tennessee, about 100 kilometers from Nashville, the state capital. The explosion razed a building to the ground and damaged many cars around it. Due to the huge power of the explosion, residents 20 kilometers away could feel the vibration of houses.

County Sheriff Chris Davis told reporters on Monday that more than 300 people had been rescued since the explosion, suggesting that all those in the building had died.

The Tennessee Emergency Administration said on Monday that 16 people were eventually confirmed missing in the explosion and that people should avoid the area so that emergency personnel can work safely and effectively.

Previously, U.S. media reported that the explosion left 19 people missing.

The cause of the explosion is unclear, and personnel from the U.S. Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives and the Federal Bureau of Investigation have joined the investigation. Defense Ministry officials said the ministry had learned of the explosion and would launch an investigation.

The factory isly part of a company called "American Precision Energy Systems", which was founded in 1980 to develop, process and store explosives and is one of the major suppliers to U.S. military and commercial customers.