1948 – May 17, Koppers Co., Inc., coal tar distillation plant tank explos./fire, Kearny NJ–10
Compiled by Wayne Blanchard Sep 26, 2023 for upload to: http://www.usdeadlyevents.com/
–10 INS. “10 Men Killed in Koppers Plant Blast in N.J.” Somerset American, PA. 5-19-1948, 6.
–10 National Fire Protection Association. “Large Loss Fires of 1948.” 42/3, Jan 1949, p. 186.
–10 The Blizzard, Oil City, PA. “10 Perish in Plant Blaze. Koppers Co…Kearny, NJ.” 5-18-1948, p.1.
Narrative Information
NFPA: “May 17 [1948] Kearney [Kearny], N.J. …Koppers Company, Inc. Coal tar distillation plant…10 killed.”
Newspapers
May 18: “Kearny, N.J. – A shattering tank explosion and fire shortly before midnight last night killed at least 10 persons at the sprawling Koppers Co. tar and chemical division plant. Nine bodies were taken from the ruins of the building along the Hackensack river and a tenth victim died in a hospital. Firemen searched the wreckage for additional victims of the blast that set off a fire in an adjoining building of the plant.
“The company’s office in Pittsburgh said the explosion occurred when a strong wind blew part of the contents of a 50,000-gallon tank of a distillate against a hot pipe. The distillate, used in making other chemicals, ‘flashed,’ and then set the tank afire. A service building, laboratory and machine shop were burned. First reports said the blast was caused by blazing naphthalene.
“Det. Sgt. Charles Schillon had estimated from eyewitness reports that 11 workers were trapped in the building when the explosion occurred. Names of the dead and missing were not immediately available.
“The blast, heard over a 15-mile area, sent a sheet of flame into the air over the plant’s tar and chemical division. The reflection against low-hanging clouds was reported seen 10 miles away. A series of minor explosions followed the first blast. Hudson County Police Lt. George Kelty, in headquarters a half-mile away, said the intense glare ‘seemed to envelope the police building. It was the closest thing to an atomic bomb explosion I ever want to see.’
“Firemen were cautiously feeling their was through the gutted building early today seeking trace of the missing me. Fire Chief William Wandaas said he feared the second floor of the building might collapse on fire search squads.
“Company officials refused information as to the cause of the blast, estimate of damage, or names of the missing men.
“Schillon said about 20 men were in the building during the shift change. The building housed a laboratory and machine shop on the first floor, and locker rooms on the second. Schillon said eyewitnesses told him they believed all but about 11 of the men in the locker room had left before the adjoining tank exploded.
“The blasted tank was one of a group containing tar products, by-products of Koppers coke manufactures.
“Two men who had just left the building said they were hurled into knee-deep water of the nearby Hackensack river.” (The Blizzard, Oil City, PA. “10 Perish in Plant Blaze. Koppers Co. Building at Kearny, N.J., Destroyed.” 5-18-1948, p. 1.)
May 18, INS: “South Kearny, N.J. – INS – Ten men were killed during the night in an explosion and fire which ripped through the Koppers Coke Co. plant in South Kearny, N.J….Among the victims was James Chisholm, 36, of Jersey City, who had been working in the plant for 19 years. He was the father of three children….
“Police said that just before midnight four 30,000 gallon tanks, containing tar and pitchblende blew up and caught fire.
“Hundreds of residents fled from their homes. East Rutherford, 15 miles away, reported that the explosion was heard clearly there.
“Seventeen employees were trapped in a two-story building adjoining the tanks, which stood on steel supports 12 feet above the ground.
“Eight employees were killed instantly, and two others were hurled into the nearby Hackensack river and swam to shore. There were 400 night-shift workers on the grounds when the explosion occurred, and police said it was a ‘miracle’ that scores were not killed or badly burned….
“Wladislaw Nesterowski, 41, of West Orange, died of burns at 7:20 a.m. edt.
“The eight bodies were burned beyond recognition and none was identified immediately.” (INS. “10 Men Killed in Koppers Plant Blast in N.J.” Somerset American, PA. 5-19-1948, p.6.)
Sources
INS. “10 Men Killed in Koppers Plant Blast in N.J.” Somerset American, PA. 5-19-1948, p.6. Accessed 9-26-2023 at: https://newspaperarchive.com/somerset-daily-american-may-19-1948-p-6/
National Fire Protection Association. “Large Loss Fires of 1948.” Quarterly of the National Fire Protection Association, Vol. 42, No. 3, January 1949, pp. 133-197.
The Blizzard, Oil City, PA. “10 Perish in Plant Blaze. Koppers Co. Building at Kearny, N.J., Destroyed.” 5-18-1948, p. 1. Accessed 9-26-2023 at:
https://newspaperarchive.com/blizzard-may-18-1948-p-1/
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