2 dead after explosion at Ala. Army base, AP

"Two contract workers died after being injured in an explosion while removing a propellant from rockets at Redstone Arsenal, where the Army conducts missile and weapons research. The public affairs office at the post in Huntsville said the two died Wednesday night after being flown to the burn unit at UAB Hospital in Birmingham. Base officials said Thursday the names of the workers would be released later. Both worked for a Redstone contractor, Amtech Corp., and were injured in an explosion at 8:45 a.m. Wednesday while removing ammonium perchlorate from rockets at a test site. The Army described the chemical as an oxidizer used in solid rocket propellant."