West, TX

[sammyg2]

History repeats.
Combining nitrogen atoms and adding fuel is a dangerous biddness.
nitrate is bad, di-nitrate is scary, tri-nitrate is wicked.

The Texas City disaster was the deadliest industrial accident in U.S. history. The incident took place on April 16, 1947, and began with a mid-morning fire on board the French-registered vessel SS Grandcamp which was docked in the Port of Texas City. The fire detonated approximately 2,300 tons (2,086,100 kg) of ammonium nitrate[1] and the resulting chain reaction of fires and explosions killed at least 581 people, including all but one member of the Texas City fire department.[2] These events also triggered the first ever class action lawsuit against the United States government, under the then-recently enacted Federal Tort Claims Act (FTCA), on behalf of 8,485 victims.

Contents [hide]
1 Ships
2 Explosions
3 Scale of the disaster
4 Firefighting casualties
5 Reactions and rebuilding
6 Legal case
7 Photo gallery
8 See also
9 Notes
10 External links


[edit] ShipsThe Grandcamp was a recently re-activated 437-foot-long (133 m) Liberty ship. Originally named the SS Benjamin R. Curtis in Los Angeles in 1942, the ship served in the Pacific theatre and was mothballed in Philadelphia after World War II. In a Cold War gesture, the ship was assigned to the French Line to assist in the rebuilding of Europe. Along with ammonium nitrate—a very common cargo on the high seas—it was carrying small arms ammunition, machinery, and bales of sisal twine on the deck. Another ship in the harbor, the SS High Flyer, was docked about 600 feet (200 m) away from the SS Grandcamp. The High Flyer contained an additional 961 tons of ammonium nitrate[1] and 1,800 tons of sulfur. The ammonium nitrate in the two ships and in the adjacent warehouse was fertilizer on its way to farmers in Europe. The Grandcamp had arrived from Houston, Texas, where the port authority did not permit loading of ammonium nitrate.

[edit] ExplosionsThe 38% ammonium nitrate, used as fertilizer and in blasting agents, was manufactured in Nebraska and Iowa and shipped to Texas City by rail before being loaded on the Grandcamp.

It was manufactured in a patented process, mixed with clay, petrolatum, rosin and paraffin wax to avoid moisture caking. It was also packaged in paper sacks, then transported and stored at temperatures that increased its chemical activity. Longshoremen reported the bags were warm to the touch prior to loading.

Around 8:00 a.m., smoke was spotted in the cargo hold of the Grandcamp while it was still moored at its dock. Over the next hour, attempts to put out the fire or put it under control failed as a red glow returned after each effort to douse the fire.

Shortly before 9:00 a.m., the captain ordered his men to steam the hold, a firefighting method where steam is piped in to put out fires in the hope of preserving the cargo. Meanwhile, the fire had attracted a crowd of spectators along the shoreline, who believed they were a safe distance away.[3] Spectators noted that the water around the docked ship was already boiling from the heat, and the splashing water touching the hull of the ship was vaporized into steam. The cargo hold and deck began to bulge as the pressure of the steam increased inside.


Wilson B. Keene, destroyed in second explosionAt 9:12 a.m., the ammonium nitrate reached an explosive threshold and the vessel then detonated, causing great destruction and damage throughout the port. The tremendous blast ( WikiMiniAtlas
29°22′32″N 94°53′30″W / 29.3756°N 94.8916°W / 29.3756; -94.8916) sent a 15-foot (4.5 m) wave that was detectable nearly 100 miles (160 km) off the Texas shoreline. The blast leveled nearly 1,000 buildings on land. The Grandcamp explosion destroyed the Monsanto Chemical Company plant and resulted in ignition of refineries and chemical tanks on the waterfront. Falling bales of burning twine added to the damage while the Grandcamp's anchor was hurled across the city. Sightseeing airplanes flying nearby had their wings shorn off,[4] forcing them out of the sky. Ten miles away, people in Galveston were forced to their knees; windows were shattered in Houston, Texas, 40 miles (60 km) away. People felt the shock 100 miles away in Louisiana. The explosion blew almost 6,350 tons of the ship's steel into the air, some at supersonic speed. Official casualty estimates came to a total of 567, including all the crewmen who remained onboard the Grandcamp, but many victims were burned to ashes or blown to bits, and the official total is believed to be an undercount. All but one member of the Texas City volunteer fire department were killed in the initial explosion on the docks while fighting the shipboard fire, and with the fires raging, first responders from other areas were initially unable to reach the site of the disaster.

The first explosion ignited ammonium nitrate in the nearby cargo ship High Flyer. The crews spent hours attempting to cut the High Flyer free from its anchor and other obstacles, but without success. After smoke had been pouring out of its hold for over five hours, and about 15 hours after the explosions aboard the Grandcamp, the High Flyer blew up demolishing the nearby SS Wilson B. Keene, killing at least two more people and increasing the damage to the port and other ships with more shrapnel and fire. One of the propellers on the High Flyer was blown off, and found almost a mile inland; it is now part of a memorial park, and sits near the anchor of the Grandcamp. The propeller is cracked in several places, and one of the blades has a large piece missing from it, a mute testament to the destruction that took place that day.

[edit] Scale of the disaster
One of Grandcamp's anchors in Texas City Memorial ParkThe Texas City Disaster is generally considered the worst industrial accident in American history. Witnesses compared the scene to the fairly recent images of the 1943 Air Raid on Bari and the much larger devastation at Nagasaki. Of the dead, 405 were identified and 63 have never been identified. These 100[clarification needed] were placed in a memorial cemetery in the north part of Texas City near Moses Lake. A remaining 113 people were classified as missing, for no identifiable parts were ever found. This figure includes firefighters who were aboard Grandcamp when it exploded. There is some speculation that there may have been hundreds more killed but uncounted, including visiting seamen, non-census laborers and their families, and an untold number of travelers. However, there were some survivors as close as 70 feet (21 m) from the dock. The victims' bodies quickly filled the local morgue, and several bodies were laid out in the local high school's gymnasium for identification by loved ones.


Parking lot 1/4 of a mile away from the explosionMore than 5,000 people were injured, with 1,784 admitted to twenty-one area hospitals. More than 500 homes were destroyed and hundreds damaged, leaving 2,000 homeless. The seaport was destroyed and many businesses were flattened or burned. Over 1,100 vehicles were damaged and 362 freight cars were obliterated—the property damage was estimated at $100 million ($1.03 billion in today's terms).[5]

A two-ton anchor of Grandcamp was hurled 1.62 miles (2.61 km) and found in a 10-foot (3 m) crater. It now rests in a memorial park. The other main five-ton anchor was hurled 1/2 mile (800 m) to the entrance of the Texas City Dike, and rests on a Texas shaped memorial at the entrance. Burning wreckage ignited everything within miles, including dozens of oil storage tanks and chemical tanks. The nearby city of Galveston, Texas, was covered with an oily fog which left deposits over every exposed outdoor surface.

[red-beard]

The dissociation reaction of ammonium nitrate was a question on our freshman chemistry exam at Texas A&M. It was prefaced by the describing the explosion in Texas city as the largest non-nuclear explosion.

[enzo1]

Originally Posted by hardflex

I drive thru West many times on my trips south of DFW. Nice little town famous for the Czek bakery fronting I35. Popular stop for gas and snacks.

Very sad .

[74-911]

Another dubious distinction it seems, the deadliest school disaster in the US. Not as many casualties as Texas City but perhaps a worse disaster in it's own way:

"The New London School explosion occurred on March 18, 1937, when a natural gas leak caused an explosion, destroying the London School of New London, Texas,[1] a community in Rusk County previously known as "London". The disaster killed more than 295 students and teachers, making it deadliest school disaster in American history. As of 2012, the event is the third deadliest disaster in the history of Texas, after the Galveston Hurricane of 1900, and the 1947 Texas City Disaster."


New London School explosion - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

[VINMAN]

My deepest condolences to my brother firefighters and all the others who lost their lives.

RIP brothers.

[Wilhelm]

Techweenie says: "There were residential homes 2 blocks from the blast (apparently zoning is loose).
"

I was thinking the same thing about loose zoning. Cripes ! Why did the city allow homes, a school, a nursing home to be built so close to that fertilizer plant ?
That doesnt make any sense at all.

[onewhippedpuppy]

Originally Posted by VINMAN

My deepest condolences to my brother firefighters and all the others who lost their lives.

RIP brothers.

+1, true heroes.

[Les Paul]

When the plant I worked at blew I was on the emergency fire crew/brigade. After the first two explosions numerous lines with butane under high pressure were severed blowing material hundreds of feet in the year. All radios we used for communication were non functional. We had bunkered up anyway and gathered near the unit/area under fire. Our firewater monitor system that had a capacity of over 3 million gallons and was bolstered with fire monitors that were capable of shooting a 4 inch stream of water under 150lbs of pressure over 200 feet. As we got to the first monitor and opened it up a stream of water sputtered out looking like a little kid whizzing in the wind. The major 24 inch firewater suppression lines had been blown up in a supposed bomb proof containment bldg unfortunately right under the blast sight. As the flames got more intense and were shooting over 200 feet up in the air the abandon plant was finally given. Luckily the two remaining reactors with over 8,000 gallons each containing more or less liquid butane under 800lbs of pressure didn't blevy too. When they rebuilt the plant I made sure to get off that voluntary fire crew. So my initial luck of not getting killed in the initial blast then immolated trying to fight a no win fire left a pretty big impression on me and I understand how unlucky those poor guys are that were first responders.

[74-911]

Originally Posted by Wilhelm

Techweenie says: "There were residential homes 2 blocks from the blast (apparently zoning is loose).
"

I was thinking the same thing about loose zoning. Cripes ! Why did the city allow homes, a school, a nursing home to be built so close to that fertilizer plant ?
That doesnt make any sense at all.

It's the economics of small towns. I grew up in a small town in N. TX. Small towns like that usually have little if any zoning and welcome any job producing industry with open arms. That plant was the major employer in West and very likely started out years ago as a small operation that no one had any concerns about and grew over the years into what it was. The towns people didn't seem to have any concerns over it's location as it had been there a long time and many of them worked there.