ATF’s Elite National Response Team activated to assist in explosion at Tennessee factory

ATF’s Elite National Response Team Activated to Assist in Explosion at Tennessee Factory

MCEWEN, Tenn. — The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) has deployed its National Response Team (NRT) to participate alongside local partners in the investigation of Friday’s deadly explosion at Accurate Energetic Systems, LLC, an explosives manufacturer in McEwen, Tennessee.

ATF’s NRT is an elite team comprised of highly trained investigative experts, with state-of-the-art equipment, specializing in explosives, fire and bombing investigations. The team, which can deploy anywhere in the United States within 24 hours of notification, is made up of special agents, certified explosives specialists, bomb technicians, explosives enforcement officers, fire protection engineers, certified fire investigators, chemists, and other specialists.

Team members, who are deploying from all over the country, are expected to arrive on scene today.

The team’s primary responsibility will be leading the investigation into the origin and cause of the explosion, including analyzing, processing and documenting the scene.

Since its inception in 1978, ATF’s NRT has deployed 940 times nationwide to provide expert investigative support following major explosions, fires, bombings, and other large-scale incidents. The team’s rapid response capability allows investigators to secure critical evidence and determine the cause of incidents that threaten public safety. This is the team’s 21stcallout this calendar year.

Past NRT activations include such incidents as: more than 200 fire scenes resulting from civil unrest throughout the Midwest in 2020, a series of bombings in Austin, Texas in 2018; and national-level incidents such as the 9/11 terrorist attack on the Pentagon; the Centennial Olympic Park bombing in Atlanta; the Oklahoma City bombing and the 1993 World Trade Center bombing.

More information on ATF and NRT can be found at www.atf.