Explosion at SpaceX launch pad at Cape Canaveral

A SpaceX rocket exploded on the launch pad at the Air Force station in Cape Canaveral, Florida, on Thursday morning as it prepared to carry a communications satellite into space this weekend.

Initial reports suggested there were no injuries and the private aerospace company’s unmanned Falcon 9 rocket exploded during routine engine testing ahead of the planned lift-off Saturday overnight.

A huge plume of smoke billowed from the site and reports claimed the explosionlasted several minutes, destroying the vehicle and shaking buildings for several miles around. The sirens of emergency vehicles could be heard approaching the area in the immediate aftermath.

Images quickly emerged on social media showing the site of the incident issuing thick clouds of dark smoke, which continued to swirl into an overcast sky more than an hour after the reported explosion as witnesses in the area gave accounts of feeling a shock wave.

SpaceX was scheduled to carry an Israeli communications satellite into orbit, with Facebook using some of that capacity. It would have been Facebook’s first satellite launch as part of chief executive Mark Zuckerberg’s vision to provide internet access to some 14 countries in sub-Saharan Africa that are currently poorly connected, according to the Orlando Sentinel. It was not clear on Thursday morning what was the fate of the satellite itself after the rocket blew up.

Officials at SpaceX called the explosion an anomaly and stated: “Can confirm that in preparation for today’s standard pre-launch static fire test, there was an anomaly on the pad resulting in the loss of the vehicle and its payload. Per standard procedure, the pad was clear and there were no injuries.”

SpaceX is the commonly used moniker for Space Exploration Technologies Corporation, the California-based private aerospace enterprise founded by Elon Musk, chief of Tesla Motors and former PayPal entrepreneur.

SpaceX has previously succeeded in landing several spent rockets at Cape Canaveral and on a barge in the ocean.