The blast occurred at around 11:00 a.m. local time [10:00 GMT] and was followed by fire, which was subsequently extinguished by firefighters, according to the media outlet.
Apart from the two killed, one person has also sustained a minor injury and seven others have been in a state of shock due to the blast, Franceinfo also reported on its website, citing former Dieppe's mayor Sebastien Jumel, who is currently a French parliamentarian.
— deSperate (@TBMJ2_) 17 февраля 2018 г.
TWEET: Explosion was followed by a fire at the Saipol plant in #Dieppe. One employee is dead and another is missing
— Ville de Dieppe — Fr (@dieppefr) 17 февраля 2018 г.
TWEET: Fire at the #Saipol plant in Dieppe: the fire brigade has arrived at the scene and cordoned off a safety perimeter of 300 meters
The reasons of the blast at the seed oil plant have not been determined so far, the outlet added. The broadcaster also quoted Winckler as saying that in his opinion the blast was an accident.
The outlet stated that earlier on Saturday maintenance was being carried out at the plant.