VIDEO: Twenty years ago on Sunday, the deadly explosion at the West Pharmaceutical Services plant happened in North Carolina.
The explosion at the Kinston facility killed six workers and injured dozens of others.
The fire burned for two days.
It was determined by the U.S. Chemical Safety and Hazard in an investigation that a build-up of combustible dust led to the explosion.
Fire and rescue, emergency management, law enforcement and other groups from Lenoir County and surrounding areas came together that day to save lives.
Captain William Barss, now with the Kinston Department of Fire & Rescue, was one of many firefighters who helped during the incident. “When you’re starting down the road and you look up, and there’s this big, huge black plume up in the sky, and that was like, ‘oh man, we’re going to that,’ you know?” Barss said.