The explosion occurred at a plant run by Accurate Energetic Systems in Hickman County’s Bucksnort area, prompting official warnings for the public to avoid the area amid fears of secondary explosions.
Davis said the blast engulfed an entire building at the facility, calling it “the most devastating scene that I’ve seen in my career”.
The blast was so massive it was heard across a large distance, with debris scattering across more than a square kilometre.
When asked to describe the state of the building where the explosion occurred, Davis said: “There’s nothing to describe. It’s gone.”
It was not immediately clear what triggered the explosion.
As officials scoured the site for clues, authorities acknowledged the agonising wait for the families of those missing.
“I’m sure there are people that are angry, I’m sure that there are people that are very sad, very upset, and I can understand that,” Davis said.
“It’s hell on us. It’s hell on everybody involved.”
Tennessee Governor Bill Lee said he was monitoring the situation.
“State agencies are responding in partnership with local [and] federal agencies,” he wrote on the social media platform X. “We ask Tennesseans to join us in prayer for the families impacted by this tragic incident.”
Accurate Energetic Systems, an explosives manufacturer founded in 1980, did not immediately respond to AFP’s request for comment.
The company’s Facebook page says it manufactures “various high explosive compositions and specialty products” for the US Department of Defence as well as US industrial markets.
Last month, the US Government awarded Accurate Energetic Systems a contract worth nearly US$120 million ($210m) for the “procurement of TNT”, according to the Pentagon.
– Agence France-Presse