Thiokol Explosion

INTRODUCTION

On February 3rd, 1971, at 10:53 A.M. EDT, at the Thiokol chemical plant, 19 km southeast of Woodbine, Georgia, and 48 km north of Jacksonville, Florida, quantities of flares and their components in building M-132 were ignited by fire and detonation occurred. This explosion is known as Thiokol-Woodbine Explosion.

BACKGROUND

The factory Thiokol Chemical was a vast complex consisting of 36 buildings located on 7400 acres of land. It was constructed in 1964 initially to test and build rocket propellers for NASA. However, NASA decided to go another way and use different propellers methods because Thiokol modified the complex to make other materials and products.

After its changes, the company received an army contract to manufacture 750,000 trip flares to be used in the Vietnam war.

M-132 [The building where the explosion occurred] was a huge building without any windows. It was a concrete block shaped like a ‘T’. For the production of the trip flares, three processes were used all located in this building. This building consisted of 80 employees, predominantly women.

The chemicals used for these flares were reactive and dangerous. Additionally, they were stored in the same building until they were transferred to another warehouse.

THE EXPLOSION

The colossal explosion started with a simple fire in the building. Small fires occasionally occurred because of the substances they were dealing with, and the employees had always been quick to extinguish it, so there was no real panic. However, they didn’t realise that this fire was different. The fire spread rapidly to the production line setting fire to the ignitions, illuminant pallets and reaching the storage room, which contained five tons of processed materials, pallets and 56,322 assembled flares. Once it got the storage room, there was a substantial devastating explosion. The survivors recalled two minor concussions before the enormous explosion which was then followed by a massive fireball.

During the 3–4 minutes of the initial fire, all the employees could exit the building but did not leave the area as they had no idea about a potential explosion.

The explosion and fire killed, dismembered and severely injured many workers. Bodies were thrown 400 feet in air and debris were found 4,200 feet away. Three buildings were heavily damaged, and the fire spread to nearby pine trees which caused a forest fire that scorched 200 acres. The explosion was heard from 80km away.

Twenty-four people were killed in the blast or died soon after. Five others later died from their injuries, primarily burns, for a total of 29 deaths. At least 50 individuals suffered debilitating injuries, including burns and limbs severed by the explosion.

RESPONSE

Ambulances and equipment were immediately requested from all the surrounding counties, including Nassau and Jacksonville in Florida, but had no idea how bad the situation was. Chemicals in barrels were still exploding when the fire chief from Camden County arrived, and he commented, “It was just devastation. People who were killed were lying everywhere. Woods were burning all around us.” The area was quickly evacuated because another building was on fire with the same contents as the exploded building. Co-workers and residents took most of those with non-life-threatening injuries to hospitals in their cars and pickups. Simultaneously, the severely injured were brought to the plant entrance where arriving ambulances rushed them for treatment to hospitals in St. Marys, Folkston, Brunswick and Jacksonville. Assistance was requested from the U.S. Navy. Four helicopters were flown to the Thiokol plant from Cecil Field and NAS Jacksonville after picking up doctors at Duval Medical Centre, the largest hospital in Jacksonville. The choppers flew the most critically injured to Duval Medical Centre (now Shand’s Jacksonville). Thiokol had a landing strip on their property, used by company executives who lived on St. Simons Island. All available pilots were requested to fly to the company airstrip to transport the injured to hospitals, the closest Brunswick. It was late afternoon before the last fire was extinguished, the wounded were transported to hospitals, and bodies’ search was completed.

By Faiz — Chemical Engineering Student — Batch of 2023