Another body found at Illinois plant explosion site; confirmed death toll 3

WAUKEGAN, Ill. (AP) — Search and rescue personnel found the body of another worker Sunday in the rubble of a northern Illinois silicone plant that exploded and burst into flames two days ago, bringing the death toll to three employees with one more body believed to be in the debris, a fire official said.

Waukegan Fire Marshal Steve Lenzi said the body was found Sunday as first responders resumed searching in hazardous conditions in the shattered remains of the AB Specialty Silicones plant in Waukegan, about 50 miles (80 kilmoters) north of Chicago

They were searching for the bodies of two of the nine workers who were in the building at the time of the explosion.

"We are in the process of removing one of those two bodies," Lenzi told a news conference Sunday. He said about half of the building still needs to be searched.

Of the nine employees in the building, one body was found early Saturday. Four people were taken to the hospital and one of those died later Saturday. The condition of the other three workers in hospital was not immediately known, Lenzi said. The third confirmed death was the body located Sunday with one other body still to recover. Two other workers declined treatment at the time of the blast.

The cause of the explosion Friday night at the plant hasn't been determined. The state fire marshal and the Occupational Safety and Health Administration are investigating.