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    Texas City explosion on April 16, 1947

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    Photographer
    Houston Press staff photo
    Date
    1947-04-16
    Abstract
    At approximately 9:12 a.m. on the morning of April, 16, 1947 the Grandcamp cargo ship exploded triggering one of the worst industrial disasters in American history. The explosion was caused by a fire in the hold containing ammonium nitrate fertilizer. The fire was discovered just before 8:00 a.m. The captain chose not to use water to put out the fire because it would ruin the cargo. Instead, he elected to fight the fire by battening down the hatches, closing the ventilators, and turing on the steam system. According to the Red Cross and Texas Department of Public Safety, there were 405 identified and 63 unidentified dead. Another 100 were classified as "believed missing" because no trace of their remains were ever found. Another approximately 3,500 people were injured. The damage was estimated at $100 million in 1947 dollars excluding loss of petroleum products that burned up and damaged refinery infastructure and pipelines. (From The Texas City Disaster website developed by Firefighters Local 1259.)
    Description
    Shot of debris covered land about a mile from ground zero. Smoke from the explosion is visible in the background.
    Citation
    Houston Press staff photo (photographer). "Texas City explosion on April 16, 1947." (1947) Museum of Houston and the Houston Metropolitan Research Center: https://hdl.handle.net/1911/36506.
    Publisher
    Museum of Houston and the Houston Metropolitan Research Center
    Citable link to this page
    https://hdl.handle.net/1911/36506
    Rights
    This material is to be used for personal or research use only. Any other use, including but not limited to commercial or scholarly reproductions, redistribution, publication, or transmission, whether by electronic means or other wise, without prior written permission is prohibited. Permission to use any material in this manuscript must be obtained from Houston Metropolitan Research Center - Houston Public Library, 500 McKinney St., Houston, TX 77002, 832/393-1658, hpl.archives@cityofhouston.net.
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    Collections
    • Houston Metropolitan Research Center (HMRC) [426]

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    Home | FAQ | Contact Us | Privacy Notice | Accessibility Statement
    Managed by the Digital Scholarship Services at Fondren Library, Rice University
    Physical Address: 6100 Main Street, Houston, Texas 77005
    Mailing Address: MS-44, P.O.BOX 1892, Houston, Texas 77251-1892
    Site Map