By Michael Pearson and AnneClaire Stapleton, CNN  updated 3:18 PM EDT, Thu June 13, 2013  Are you there? Share your images, but stay safe.  (CNN) -- A plume of thick smoke rose over a Louisiana chemical plant Thursday after an explosion and fire that left at least one person dead and forced authorities to ask people as far as 2 miles away to stay inside to avoid exposure to potentially toxic fumes.  A dramatic image provided to CNN affiliate WAFB by a plant worker who did not want to be identified showed workers running from a towering orange column of flame ripping through part of the plant.  Louisiana Gov. Bobby Jindal told reporters that 73 people had been taken to the hospital.  Aside from a controlled burn at the Williams Geismar plant, the fire was out, Louisiana State Police Trooper Jaren Sandifer told CNN.  Firefighters and a hazardous materials team were evaluating the situation, Ascension Parish Sheriff Jeffrey Wiley told reporters.  "We think we have a stable situation," he said.  As Jindal traveled to the area to meet with emergency workers, authorities lifted the shelter-in-place order for nearby residents early Thursday afternoon. Four nearby chemical plants remained under a similar order, Ascension Parish spokesman Lester Kenyon told CNN.  At least one person died, Sandifer said.  Three people were hospitalized in critical condition, according to information provided by hospitals who reported receiving patients from the blast -- Baton Rouge General Hospital, Our Lady of the Lake Regional Medical Center and St. Elizabeth Hospital.  Two people were in serious condition, seven were in fair condition, 11 were in good condition and four had not yet been evaluated, according to the hospitals.  About 600 people were at the plant when the explosion occurred, Sandifer told CNN.  It was unclear what caused the blast, he said.  The plant produces about 1.3 billion pounds of ethylene and 90 million pounds of polymer-grade propylene each year, according to the company's website.  WAFB, citing state police, said two state routes had been closed near the plant, which is about 30 miles southeast of Baton Rouge.  The explosion in Louisiana comes two months after a deadly fertilizer plant explosion in West, Texas, on April 17. In that incident, 15 people died and a significant portion of the town was damaged by the explosion.  See also: Cause of Texas explosion "undetermined"
A Geismar, Louisiana, chemical plant, exploded and caught fire Thursday, killing at least one person and forcing authorities to evacuate the area nearby.