Pope Francis asks prayers for the victims of Texas Explosion

Vatican City, 18 April 2013: Please join me in praying for the victims of the explosion in Texas and their families, Pope Francis tweeted on Thursday morning.

Pope Francis wrote to his followers on Twitter after a massive explosion on Wednesday night at a fertilizer plant on the edge of the small Texas town of West killed at least 15 people, wounded more than 150, levelled dozens of homes and prompted authorities to evacuate half their community of 2,800.

The blast shook houses 50 miles away and measured as a 2.1-magnitude seismic event, according to the United States Geological Survey. "It was a like a nuclear bomb went off with big old mushroom cloud, said West Mayor Tommy Muska.