Remembering Another Tragedy

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As most of you know, there was a major news story here in Louisville earlier this week, when a UPS cargo plane crashed on takeoff from Louisville International Airport. There were three crew members on board and 11 people on the ground killed in the crash. Needless to say, it’s been a very somber week here in town. The local college team is wearing a memorial sticker on their helmets during the game tonight. It brought to mind another tragedy that happened here in my lifetime. We’ve had our share, as any city has (with tornadoes, mass shootings, fires, and the like), but the one in question is one that I distinctly remember, despite being only five years old when it happened. It was August 25, 1965. My brother and I were at our babysitter’s house, watching the popular local kids show T-Bar-V Ranch. With no warning, the house shook viciously. My babysitter, who had the habit of going back to bed once Mom dropped us off (naps are good, I learned that at a young age! ), was awakened by it. A few minutes later later, another boom and another rattling of the walls, windows, and everything…including children’s nerves. Shortly after the second boom, Cactus Tom (Brooks, brother of comedian Foster Brooks) and Randy (Atcher, popular country singer going back to the 30s with his brother Bob) were off TV and the news department was on. They were telling everyone that there had been some explosions at the DuPont plant in what we call “Rubbertown” (because of all of the industrial plants there). While not the first in the nation, it became the first live, from-the-scene newscast in Louisville history, over WHAS-11. There would be still more explosions at the plant through the day, including a massive one while rescuers were inside, looking for injured survivors. When the fires were extinguished, twelve people had been killed. It was, and remains, the worst industrial accident in Louisville. As far as I know, there’s no memorial on Camp Ground Road (where the DuPont plant is — yes, they’re still here, just owned by Dow Chemical now) to remember the victims. Like so many tragedies in our history, it’s faded from memory for most, except the people directly affected (relatives, friends, survivors)…and kids like me who remember it when the news breaks of another disaster in town. Here’s a website’s report on the explosion: