‘They’ll always come together’: One year after Horizon Biofuels explosion

FREMONT, Neb. —

In the year since the Horizon Biofuels explosion, Fremont Rural Fire Chief Carl Nielsen is still putting out the fires.

“There was one night during the demolition of it that they had a flare up over there, and we had to go over and put it out,” Carl said.

His work on the explosion earned him recognition as one of the nation’s top first responders.

“It was truly a surprise to be recognized,” Carl said. “There was a lot more than just one person doing things over there. It was truly a team effort.”

“It was a no-brainer to nominate him,” Becky Nielsen, Carl’s wife and nominator, said. “He’s been through the Horizon Biofuels, he’s been through the 2019 floods, the airplane crash. He spends a lot of time at the fire department and has a lot of resources, and we’re just proud of him.”

On the day of July 29, 2025, Carl acted as head of incident command collaborating with police, fire crews, emergency management and federal officials throughout the incident. Carl also called in Sapp Bros. fuel trucks to make sure first responders could continually spray water on the flames.

“Throughout it obviously was the fire suppression and getting people and equipment mobilized to get the victims found and out of there,” Carl said.

Carl said the city of Fremont kept him and his team going.

“We never had to worry about if there was water or food or any refreshments,” Carl said. “People were bringing an abundance of care packages and stuff like that for all the guys.”

Now one year later, Carl said it’s not about him — it’s about the families who lost their loved ones. The explosion killed 32-year-old Dylan Danielson and his two daughters, 12-year-old Hayven and 8-year-old Fayeah.

Horizon Biofuels is now just rubble, but Fremont still remembers.

“They’ll always come together, you know,” Becky said. “It’s just what Fremont is and how Fremont people are.”

Previous coverage: Fremont plant faces citation penalty from OSHA after deadly explosion

OSHA fined Horizon Biofuels over $147,000 for the blast in February 2026. The mothers of the young girls have both filed lawsuits alleging the company should have had a policy preventing their daughters from being on the property.

Previous coverage: Mother of young girl killed in Fremont explosion files lawsuit