About the Explosion
At the time of the grain dust explosion the DeBruce grain elevator consisted of 310 grain storage silos and had a 20.7 million bushel capacity, but was only storing 7 million bushels of wheat and sorghum. These silos were in a line three wide, with a headhouse in the middle The suspected cause of the explosion was discovered by OSHA inspectors to be a bad ball bearing in a seized grain belt motor, which caused a spark and ignited the grain dust.
In most grain elevator explosions the use of blast gates helps to lower the force of the explosions, and causes the concrete structure to just break up. In this instance the blast gates were either blown away or disabled by the force of the explosion, which caused the concrete structures to be pulverized by the blast.
Modern Improvements
The Sedgwick County Division Chief Carl Cox said that when they were searching for survivors they used only the limited supplies they had on hand. This included sheets of plywood, 4 x 4 wood posts, and basic jacks. He explained that now they have much more sophisticated equipment and that, “I would say our response capabilities was then probably a 2 and today we’re a 10”.
These first responders now have have cameras able to be placed in small areas, and microphones that are so sensitive they can hear a bottle cap being dropped eight feet away. OSHA’s area inspector says that now businesses are inspected for combustible dust issues, and companies are working to address these issues and remove hazards.