Propane Blast Closes Bombardier Plant

Bombardier canceled the midnight and morning shifts at its Downsview, Ontario factory today to clean up debris from an explosion at a nearby north Toronto propane factory yesterday morning. A Bombardier spokesman told AIN that the blast broke factory windows, buckled doors and caused sporadic electrical interruption; however, none of the estimated 20 security and customer support employees in the Bombardier plant at the time of the 3:50 a.m. blast sustained injuries.

The explosion happened at Sunrise Propane Industrial Gases, located on Murray Road, roughly a block from the Bombardier plant on Garratt Boulevard. Police evacuated residents within a one-mile radius of the explosion and ordered the closure of area highways. As of this morning, residents had begun returning home and the highways had reopened. Bombardier’s Downsview plant builds the Q400 turboprop, the Global Express and 5000 and wings for various Learjets.