It was a landscape like after an atomic bomb. Many of the victims may have been reduced to ashes. Disaster in Texas City

On April 16, 1947, in the port of Texas City, in the US state of Texas, ammonium nitrate was loaded. The French-flagged Grandcamp was about to set sail for Europe. On board, 2,300 tons of a substance used both for the production of explosives and fertilizers were collected. It is extremely dangerous because it is prone to self-ignition. It can ignite and explode just by coming into contact with other substances, and even under unfavorable conditions, such as high temperature. And it was the last of the factors that could turn out to be decisive in the case of the Texas City disaster.

First smoke, then fire, and finally an explosion comparable to a nuclear one

First things first. The French unit was built in Los Angeles in 1942. During World War II, flying the American flag, she served in the Pacific region. After the end of hostilities, the ship was sent to help rebuild France. The dangerous cargo, which was loaded on board on the day of the disaster, was to be sent to Europe, where it was to be used as fertilizer. There were plenty of other goods in the hold, from peanuts to cotton to weapons and industrial equipment.

Dock workers reported that the bags with the strange substance were hot to the touch. This probably meant that the ammonium nitrate exposed to high temperature was activated. Had these warnings been heeded, the tragedy could have been avoided.

By eight o’clock in the morning, however, it was too late to raise the alarm. Smoke was first noticed coming from the cargo hold. Workers rushed to find its source, flooded the deck with gallons of water, used fire extinguishers. However, this did not bring much effect. The people were ordered to withdraw. They were also forbidden to use water, the port authorities did not want to destroy the extremely expensive cargo. The order was given to close all hatches and use steam. All because of the regulations, through which the loading company would have to cover the cost of the goods damaged during the load. The method turned out to be ineffective. And even increasing the risk.

Disaster in Texas City photo. Wikimedia CC 3.0 (Public Domain)

The shock wave ripped off the wings of the planes. Tons of debris thrown at the speed of sound

Inside the ship, a mixture of gases with a temperature of over 450 degrees Celsius was created, which began to burst the structure. The intense smoke coming out even attracted the attention of onlookers on the quayside. Firefighters arrived at the scene, but did not have time to do much. At 9:12 the worst happened. The explosion was unexpected and extremely powerful. The shock wave that swept the area with enormous speed destroyed 1,000 nearby buildings. Workers of nearby factories died, people gathered on the shore, but the nightmare did not end there. The explosion was the beginning of a chain reaction. Hot fragments hit the tanks with chemicals, tearing everything in its path. With “shrapnel” in mind, even such large elements as Grandcamp’s anchor need to be mentioned. A piece of iron weighing two tons was found in a three-meter crater 2.7 km from the port.

The force of the explosion was so powerful that the shock wave reached two small planes flying nearby. Their wings have been torn off. It also knocked down people on the streets of Galveston, 16 km away, and broke windows in Houston, 60 km away. Thousands of tons of metal shards were flying everywhere, accelerated to the speed of sound. In the bay itself, the explosion caused a real tsunami that literally washed the shore. No wonder scientists compare the explosion to the one that occurred in Hiroshima after the American nuclear bomb was dropped.

The official death toll is 581 people. Experts, however, have no doubt that not all those who died have been found. The media also add to the dark number of victims illegal immigrants and their families, gathered on board ships, sailors working “illegally” and other personnel. Many bodies could literally be ground to ashes. 405 was officially identified. Corpses filled not only the mortuary, but also the gymnasium of a nearby school.

While some helped the victims of the explosion, others fought the fire that was consuming what was left of the port. The fire from Grandcamp moved to nearby units. One of them burst into flames, as did several other ships. The fight with the element lasted many hours, but ultimately ended in defeat and additional fatalities. The moored “Wilson B. Keene” exploded.

A tragic balance sheet that could have been greater

5,000 people were injured in the disaster. 500 buildings collapsed, hundreds were damaged, thousands of people became homeless. The port itself was also destroyed. As a result of the tragedy, 800 children were also orphaned.

The tragedy had far-reaching legal consequences. The biggest allegations were directed at companies producing and packing ammonium nitrate. They were supposed to turn a blind eye to incorrect transport and reloading procedures. After a trial that dragged on for years, all charges were dropped, but in other lawsuits, the families of individual victims and representatives of the affected companies won small damages.

But what was the cause of the tragedy? There is no certainty about that. Perhaps the fertilizer spilling out of the damaged bags was ignited by the cigarette butt. It was this version that was considered the most likely during the trial. There were also suspicions of sabotage. It is known, however, that the way the substance was packaged contributed to the tragedy – it was mixed with clay, paraffin, petroleum jelly to prevent moisture absorption. This protection worked only in theory, because the paper bags used for packaging were easily perforated and allowed the mixture to be exposed to external conditions.

Today we also know that the scale of the tragedy could have been greater. High Flyer, the other ship, exploded with more force than Grandcamp. There were no more victims, because the explosion took place after several hours, when the authorities managed to evacuate everyone from the danger zone. The explosion and so increased the scale of damage, but the material ones – more buildings were damaged. The total damage from the Texas City disaster, in 2021 currency, is estimated at $965,000,000.

There were also real miracles. A few people who were only a few dozen meters from the shore survived the powerful explosion. Today, the tragedy, which was caused by a combination of unfavorable circumstances and negligence during the packaging of a dangerous substance, is reminded by the anchor of the unlucky ship transformed into a monument to the victims.