The Texas City Explosion – or ‘Disaster’ – refers to a chain of chemical reactions that caused a number of devastating explosions! These tragic events unfolded on April 16th, 1947 – when a fire ignited a shipment of ‘ammonium nitrate’ stored on a cargo vessel moored in Texas City’s harbour of Galveston Bay! The explosion killed about 600 people and injured more than 3,500! The ship’s anchor was propelled over 1.6 miles away and a vast area of Texas resembled the destroyed terrain of the Japanese cities of Hiroshima and Nagasaki – after the US dropping of two Atomic Bombs during late 1945! The devastation was so widespread that it wiped-out the local Fire Brigade and destroyed all ‘four’ of its Fire Engines! Although there have been many (and numerous) sinister ‘nuclear’ accidents throughout US history – this explosion is considered one of the worst in history (similar to the Beirut explosion of 2020) and more initially destructive than the Chernobyl nuclear accident that occured in the USSR during 1986!
In the latter accident (which the capitalist world uses as an ongoing indictment of ‘Socialism’) only 31 people were killed (28 by exposure to radiation) with 203 requiring hospitalisation. Most of these casualties were Soviet Fire Fighters and Soviet Ambulance Staff. Of course, the radiation ‘half-life’ and ‘fallout’ has been an ongoing concern – but no more so than any other nuclear ‘accident’ or deliberate ‘explosion’ carried-out by the West! As the capitalist world is enthused with Judeo-Christian dogma – the US is said to represents everything that is ‘good’ – and the reality represented by Socialism is deemed as ‘evil’, therefore the (capitalist) ‘Texas Disaster’ equals ‘good’ and the (Socialist) ‘Chernobyl Disaster’ equals ‘bad’! This is the essence of US anti-intellectualism.
On the morning of April 16th, 1947, a cargo ship moored in Galveston Bay (Texas City), caught fire – detonating 2,300 tons of ammonium nitrate! This massive explosion ignited a chain reaction which caused a nearby chemical plant to explode! The resulting fire-ball soared into the sky (reminiscent of a nuclear mushroom), whilst the orange smoke plume rose-up from the Port and could be seen from a Chemical Plant situated 3 kilometres away! As a result, a raging fire spread and began to threaten the safety of the local population. This huge explosion created a localised – but devastating – tsunami! Countless people were swept away by the massive waves! When the water finally subsided – hundreds of drowned corpses littered the shore line! The initial fire killed about 600 people and injured more than 3,500! This disaster is generally considered the worst industrial explosion in US history.
Chinese Language Article:
https://baike.baidu.com/item/德克萨斯城灾难/5050513?fr=aladdin
THE SANGHA KOMMUNE (SSR) 