A chemical plant fire in Illinois could cause an environmental nightmare according to a fire chief. The blaze engulfed the Chemtool plant in Rockford on Monday morning and has forced anyone within a mile of the site to evacuate the area.

According to a statement by Chemtool, all staff on site are safe and have been evacuated. The statement read: “Our concern right now is for the safety of all our employees and the surrounding community. As a precaution, authorities have evacuated residents in a one-mile radius of the site.

“We do not yet know what caused this incident, but we will be working with local authorities and with our own risk management team to determine what happened and identify any corrective actions. We will share more details as they are known. We are grateful to our employees, first responders and safety forces responding to this incident.”

According to nearby residents, several explosions could be heard before plumes of smoke were seen above the chemical plant.

The Governor of Illinois Governor JB Pritzker said: “Teams from multiple state agencies are on the ground and coordinating closely with local authorities and we will continue to make additional information available as soon we have it. To those impacted, please listen to guidance from emergency officials and know that the state of Illinois is doing everything possible to protect you and your loved ones.”