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1958 Brownfield, Texas truck explosion disaster...
1958 Brownfield, Texas truck explosion disaster...
Item # 724143
December 23, 1958
THE DETROIT NEWS, Dec. 23, 1958
* Brownfield, Terry County, Texas
* Butane truck explosion disaster
The top of the front page has a six column headline: "160 Hurt, 4 Killed as Blasts Hit Town" with subheads and related photo. (see images)
Complete with 28 pages, light toning and minor wear at the margins, small library stamp within the masthead, small binding holes along the spine, generally nice.
background: On December 23, 1958, a catastrophic butane truck explosion occurred in Brownfield, Texas, United States, marking one of the deadliest industrial accidents of the era. A transport truck carrying highly flammable butane had collided and caught fire while parked near a crowd of onlookers and volunteer firefighters. Approximately 20–30 minutes after the initial blaze, the truck suddenly exploded with immense force, sending flames up to 1,000 feet high and hurling heavy metal fragments for over two miles. The explosion killed four people, including the truck driver and three firefighters, and injured more than 100 others, many with severe burns and trauma. The blast destroyed nearby infrastructure, shattered windows across the town, and caused widespread panic, illustrating the extreme dangers of handling large quantities of pressurized flammable gas without proper safety measures.
Category: The 20th Century
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