Officials in St. Charles Parish, La., said the early morning explosion at the ADM/Growmark grain elevator was so powerful, windows on area homes were shaken by the blast, The (New Orleans) Times-Picayune reported.

The St. Charles Parish Emergency Operations Center said area residents were not asked to evacuate following the blast, but the grain elevator was evacuated as a precaution.

Lee Hebert, an emergency operations center operator in the parish, said firefighters are searching the scene of the explosion. The exact cause of the explosion and fire were not reported.

The site was one of two grain elevators owned by the Archer Daniels Midland Co. (NYSE:ADM) in the parish, The Times-Picayune reported.

The St. Charles Parish Department of Economic Development told the newspaper 178 people are employed at the two ADM sites.