Louisville leaders push to rezone former Givaudan plant site 1 year after deadly blast

LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WDRB) -- Wednesday marks one year since the Givaudan Sense Colour plant exploded in Louisville's Clifton neighborhood.

Two workers were killed and 11 others were hurt in the Nov. 12, 2024, blast that also damaged nearby homes and businesses.

What was left of the food coloring plant on Payne Street was torn down back in September. Givaudan said it won't rebuild at the Clifton site and plans to consider elsewhere in Kentucky or neighboring states for a new plant.

As for the future of the site, Louisville's mayor said there are efforts to rezone it for something other than manufacturing.

"Right now, Councilman (Andrew) Owens has introduced an ordinance to rezone that property so it can't be used for the same industrial use that it has historically been used for," Mayor Craig Greenberg said Tuesday. "I support Owens' resolution, and Givaudan still owns that property. Some cleanup continues, but I would love to see a different use for that site in the future."

Investigators found the cause of the explosion was a cooking vessel failure. A state investigation found the issue that caused the vessel to explode had been documented months before. 

Clifton neighborhood reflects one year later

One year after the explosion rocked Louisville's Clifton neighborhood, debris that once littered yards is gone, and many of the damaged homes have been repaired.

A few houses near the plant are scheduled for demolition, but most properties are slowly returning to normal.

AEW professional wrestler Truth Magnum, who lived near the plant at the time of the explosion, said it took out his fence. 

"This giant piece right here—I don’t know if that is half a boiler or what—but my car would have been parked right there," Magnum said at the time, pointing to the debris that landed in his yard. "It would have destroyed that."

Next door, pieces of metal that were never meant to leave the plant scattered across yards and into the street, a stark reminder of the explosion’s force.

Hannah Henshaw and her husband Troy also live near the plant, and shared their story with WDRB in the days after the explosion.

“I’m really worried about a lot of us. I know a lot of us have never really liked that factory being there. I think this is going to show why,” Henshaw said the day of the explosion. From the bridge, she could see her home and the massive response from police, firefighters and emergency personnel.

The tragedy hit even closer to home for Henshaw when she learned a few days after the fact that one of the two workers who died was a former classmate.

“One of the people that died in the factory, I actually graduated from high school in his class, and I knew him. I had no idea he worked there, Yeah. Talk about hitting close to home,” she said at the time.

In the aftermath, Henshaw said she just wanted it all to be over with.

"Once the whole thing is done, we're doing something else with that," she said at the time. "I much prefer to watch that happen than having it loom over us from the front yard.”

The Henshaws said the experience, at the time, also prompted new conversations in their marriage. 

“It’s not quite a near-death experience, but witnessing something like this makes you reassess things,” Hannah Henshaw said.

Even now, a year later, the area still bears reminders of the incident.

“I drive past it still, and it’s hard to believe. There’s still a lot over there. The main tower is still standing, so I think that’s going to be a project in itself. They predicted the demolition wouldn’t take long, but it doesn’t seem to be moving very quickly either,” Henshaw said.

Tuesday, almost a year later, the couple said it's brought them closer to their neighbors through community meetings and their shared experiences.

“It really brought the community together, especially with our more recent neighbors. We talk more frequently now than we ever used to,” she said. “We’re all happy to move past it.”

A year after the explosion, the Clifton neighborhood continues its slow path to recovery, with residents finding resilience in their rebuilt homes and strengthened community ties.

Related Stories:

Louisville city leaders, Clifton neighbors discuss fate of former Givaudan site

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Cooking vessel ‘overpressurized’ a year before explosion at Louisville plant, investigation finds

Clifton neighbors upset with how Givaudan has handled aftermath of deadly explosion

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Federal investigators release latest findings in deadly Givaudan plant explosion in Louisville

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