The Texas City Disaster
The\xa01947 Texas City disaster\xa0was an industrial accident that occurred on April 16, 1947, in the\xa0Port of Texas City, Texas, at\xa0Galveston Bay. It was the deadliest industrial accident in United States history and one of history's\xa0largest non-nuclear explosions. A mid-morning fire started on board the French-registered vessel SS\xa0Grandcamp\xa0(docked in the port) and detonated her cargo of about 2,300\xa0tons\xa0(about 2,100\xa0metric tons) of\xa0ammonium nitrate.[1]\xa0This started a\xa0chain reaction\xa0of fires and explosions in other ships and nearby\xa0oil-storage facilities, ultimately killing at least 581 people, including all but one member of the Texas City fire department.[2]
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