By Theodoric Meyer, ProPublica

A week after a blast at a Texas fertilizer plant killed at least 15 people and hurt more than 200, authorities still don't know exactly why the West Chemical and Fertilizer Company plant exploded.

Here's what we do know: The fertilizer plant hadn't been inspected by the Occupational Safety and Health Administration since 1985. Its owners do not seem to have told the Department of Homeland Security that they were storing large quantities of potentially explosive fertilizer, as regulations require. And the most recent partial safety inspection of the facility in 2011 led to $5,250 in fines.

We've laid out which agencies were in charge of regulating the plant and who's investigating the explosion now.

What happened, exactly?

Around 7:30 p.m. on April 17, a fire broke out at the West Chemical and Fertilizer Company plant in West, Texas, a small town of about 2,800 people 75 miles south of Dallas. Twenty minutes later, it blew up. The explosion shook houses 50 miles away and was so powerful that the United States Geological Survey registered it as a 2.1-magnitude earthquake. It flattened homes within a five-block radius and destroyed a nursing home, an apartment complex, and a nearby middle school.  According to the New York Times, the blast left a crater 93 feet wide and 10 feet deep, and the fire "burned with such intensity that railroad tracks were fused."

The blast killed at least 15 people, most of them firefighters and other first responders.

Have fertilizer plants ever exploded before?

Yes. A plant in Sergeant Bluff, Iowa, that manufactured ammonium nitrate fertilizer — the same explosive chemical stored in West — exploded on Dec. 13, 1994, killing four people and injuring 18.

But fertilizer plants are safer now, said Stephen Slater, the Iowa administrator of the Occupational Safety and Health Administration. "All kinds of technologies have had huge improvements," he told the Des Moines Register. "And we haven't had any bad experiences at the plants in the 20 years since [the accident]. I'm knocking on wood." (Slater didn't respond to our requests for comment.)

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A bank foreclosure and eviction goes horribly wrong when the former homeowner took four firefighters hostage in a suburban Atlanta, Georgia neighborhood on Wednesday.

The gunman who took four Georgia firefighters hostage Wednesday has been shot and killed, reportedly by SWAT-team members. One police officer was wounded, and all four firefighters have been taken to the hospital for minor injuries. The hostage scene erupted Wednesday afternoon after firefighters responded to a 911 call from a man saying he was having a heart attack at a home near Atlanta, police said. The gunman reportedly was holding the firefighters hostage over demands his utilities and cable be turned back on.

Initially five firefighters were held, but the gunman released one in order to move the fire truck.

NBC Atlanta 11 Alive:

According to authorities, police used a "flash bang grenade" to distract the suspect when they felt their officers were in "immediate danger" on the scene.

All four of the firefighters taken hostage are safe and sustained superficial wounds during their recovery effort and one Gwinnett County officer was injured. According to authorities, the officers injuries are non-life threatening.

A sheriff's deputy said the gunman is upset that the house is in foreclosure, The Atlanta Journal-Constitution reported.

According to property tax records, the home where the firefighters were being held was foreclosed on in November 2012 by Wells Fargo, and the mortgage then sold to Fannie Mae.

Gwinnett County Police Cpl. Edwin Ritter said the unidentified gunman was facing eviction and wanted the power turned back on.

The identity of the deceased has not yet been released pending notification of next of kin.

Wildfires in Colorado continue to rage. As of Wednesday morning, the 6,200-acre blaze had been only 5 percent contained, and 65 mph winds blew the fire through containment lines into northwest Colorado Springs on Tuesday. Officials say it is exhibiting “extreme fire behavior.” Roughly 32,000 residents have been evacuated from the area so far. Colorado Springs reached a record 101 degrees on Tuesday, and conditions are expected to be hot and dry until early next week. Gov. John Hickenlooper said, “It’s as serious as it gets,” while the Colorado Springs fire chief labeled it “a firestorm of epic proportions.”

Support Firefighters on the Frontline and Displaced Families of Colorado Springs

Wednesday, June 26th

Donations Accepted from 8:30-2:00 pm

Location: Walmart Parking Lot in Castle Rock...
Just east of I-25 off Front Street

What is Needed?

Individually Wrapped

Bottled Water
Gatorade or Similar Drinks
Cereal Bars
Power Bars
Trail Mix
Cookies
Candies

Blankets and Hand Sanitizer

Help support our neighbors to the south and those actively engaged
in supressing the blaze by donating much needed items.

All Donations will be delivered directly to Red Cross in Colorado Springs.

Other ways to help Firefighters and Families of the Waldo Canyon Fire: Bring Donations to Wal-mart in Castle Rock, to Volunteer contact 719-955-0742, to make a Cash Donation to the Red Cross contact Adriana Watson at 719-884-1047 or Pat Sisterson at 719-884-1047.

[Editor's note: This post has been edited to correct mention of an organizer who was mistakenly identified as a member of Occupy Denver. Apologies for the error.]

The Kissers perform "Scotty, We're Coming For You" at a rally in support of workers' rights at the Wisconsin State Capitol in Madison, Wis. on Mar. 19, 2011. Iraq Veterans Against the War marched to the Capitol, accompanied by firefighters and members of AFL-CIO to rally against Gov. Scott Walker, whose budget repair bill would strip public workers of their collective bargaining rights.