Low Moor Explosion facts for kids
Quick facts for kids 
The firefighters memorial at Birkenshaw
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| Date | 21–24 August 1916 |
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| Location | Low Moor, Bradford, West Riding of Yorkshire |
| Also known as | The Low Moor Disaster The Low Moor Munitions Company Explosion |
| Type | Explosion Fire |
| Cause | Incorrect storage of Picric acid |
| Deaths | 40 |
| Non-fatal injuries | 100 (estimated) |
| Inquest | 16 September 1916 |
| Coroner | Mr J G Hutchinson |
The Low Moor Explosion was a huge fire and a series of blasts at a factory in Low Moor, Bradford, England. This happened in August 1916, during the First World War. The factory was making picric acid, a powerful explosive used in bombs and shells.
When the Bradford Fire Brigade arrived, the factory was already burning brightly. Then, a massive explosion and many smaller ones rocked the area. Forty people died, including workers, a railway employee, and six brave firefighters.
After the disaster, some Belgian workers were first suspected. People thought they might have been helping the Germans. But investigations proved this was wrong. The real cause was simply that dangerous materials were not stored correctly. This allowed them to catch fire. News about the disaster was not widely shared at the time. This was because of rules that stopped reporting on such events during the war.
A special monument for the dead firefighters was put up in 1924. It is in Scholemoor Cemetery in Bradford. However, the factory workers who died did not have a memorial until 2016. On the 100-year anniversary, a plaque was placed near the old factory site.
Contents
History of the Factory
The factory started as the Low Moor Chemical Company (LMCC). It made chemicals for dyeing clothes. In the late 1800s, Bradford was famous for making textiles. LMCC produced dyes for many local companies.
The company had permission to make picric acid as early as 1898. This was 16 years before the First World War began. Picric acid has a strong yellow color, which was great for dyeing carpets. A type of picric acid called Lyddite was tested by the British Army in 1888.
War Production and Growth
During the First World War, many factories like Low Moor changed what they made. They started producing shells, explosives, or parts for the war effort. This was especially true during the Shell Crisis of 1915, when there weren't enough weapons.
Since LMCC already made picric acid, the Ministry of Munitions took it over. It was renamed Factory No. 182, Yorkshire. Before the war, LMCC made about 35 tonnes of acid each week. By the time of the explosion two years later, it was making almost 200 tonnes weekly. It was a very important supplier of picric acid for the war.
The factory was connected to the local railway network. It was also near another dye works, the Low Moor Ironworks, and the Bradford Gasworks.
The Day of the Explosion
The factory and its storage areas for picric acid grew much bigger because of the war. Before the war, production was safe. So, permission to increase output was given without much checking.
In the six months before the big explosion, many small fires happened in the storage areas. These were ignored, probably because making explosives was seen as more important.
On August 21, 1916, about 250 staff were working at the factory. Around 30 people were absent, mostly Belgian refugees. At about 2:25 PM, a worker was moving open barrels from a train wagon to a storage building. There are different stories about what happened next. But a fire started in one of the storage buildings. This led to an explosion that knocked the worker to the ground.
A series of smaller explosions shook the factory. The factory's own fire brigade tried to put out the fires. Soon, firefighters from Odsal and Bradford Nelson Street were called to the site. Eighteen City of Bradford firefighters arrived.
The Main Blast
At 3:16 PM, a huge explosion rocked the entire area. Six firefighters were killed, and their fire engine was destroyed. Pieces of it were found miles away at Heckmondwike railway station.
Chief Fire Officer Scott was badly hurt and unconscious. His deputy, Superintendent Forbes, pulled him away from the fire. Forbes then bravely went back to rescue more of his colleagues. He took them to safety before collapsing himself.
The explosion caused flying pieces to hit a nearby gas holder. This led to an even bigger explosion as 270,000 cubic meters of gas caught fire. The heat from this blast could be felt over a mile away. People saw the gas holder collapse like a "deflated balloon." Workers fleeing the site had bleached hair and yellow skin from being covered in picric acid.
The exploding gas created a fireball that could be seen as far away as York. The sound of the blast traveled over 100 miles. By 6:00 PM, most of the factory buildings were on fire or had exploded. There was major damage to the nearby ironworks, dye works, and the Lancashire & Yorkshire Railway lines. The gasworks was completely destroyed.
On the first day, there were over 20 explosions. The fires were not fully put out until three days later. By the fourth day, twenty bodies had been found.
Damage and Casualties
Over 2,000 homes in the local area were damaged. All houses within a two-mile circle had their windows shattered. Fifty homes were so badly damaged they had to be torn down. The explosions also ruined the local railway. Thirty train wagons were destroyed, and 100 more were damaged.
One of the people who died was Henry Richard Tunks, a fireman from the Lancashire & Yorkshire Railway Fire Brigade. He was trying to put out fires on railway property caused by the blast. The signal operator in a nearby signal box quickly set all his railway signals to red. He then escaped just before his signal box was destroyed.
The number of dead was first reported as between 34 and 39. But an updated count confirms that 40 people died. Some of the six dead firefighters had to be identified by the numbers on their axes. Thirty-five bodies were found at the factory. But five others died later from their injuries.
The factory manager, John Majerus, helped fight the fire early on. Between 5:00 and 6:00 PM, he was found crawling in the wreckage, only slightly hurt. But he died at his home that same night. Bodies found at the site were kept in a temporary morgue at a school in Low Moor.
One reason for the unclear number of deaths was an unidentified worker. So, 39 named people died, but 40 bodies were found. A local group, the Low Moor History Group, believes the unnamed man was Thomas Woodfine. He was single and from Kent. No one saw him leave, and his whereabouts were unknown.
Similar disasters happened at other factories like Barnbow, Faversham, and Chilwell. Like Low Moor, these events were not widely reported. This was to protect public spirits during the war. The Ministry of Munitions called the Low Moor event "war-sensitive."
Around 600 people died in accidents at munitions factories between 1914 and 1918. Some people believe that if this disaster had happened in peacetime, it would have been reported in much more detail.
A newspaper, the Yorkshire Observer, reported two days later (August 23, 1916): "The explosion began with a small fire outside one of the small magazines, which shortly afterwards exploded, and this explosion was followed at short intervals by other explosions until the largest magazine exploded and caused the greater part of the damage. The loss of life was not so serious as at first seemed probable, and this was due to the fact that the fire which preceded the first explosion gave sufficient warning to enable most of the men and all of the women workers to get out of danger." In the same newspaper, the main news was about the death of 2,588 soldiers at the Battle of the Somme.
It was estimated that 100 people were injured, with 60 having serious injuries. This included twelve firefighters who survived the 3:16 PM explosion. A bride who had just left her wedding church was cut by flying glass. Other reports suggest even higher numbers of injuries. This is because damage happened many miles away from the explosions.
Aftermath of the Disaster
Four days after the disaster, questions were asked in Parliament. People wanted to know why the location, number of dead, and cause had not been shared. Dr Christopher Addison, who led the Ministry of Munitions, said they had only found a certain number of bodies. He added that investigations into the cause were still happening.
The issue was brought up in Parliament several times in late 1916. But the exact location was never officially revealed. Many discussions in the House of Commons were about how people could claim money for their losses. They also asked if the process could be made faster. During these talks, Dr. Addison said the factory was not directly owned by the Ministry of Munitions. It belonged to a "Joint Stock Company."
The Investigation and Verdict
An investigation was started by Major Cooper-Key, an explosives inspector. It was called "Accident 379/1916." The investigation found that the company was storing twice as much picric acid as it was allowed to.
This investigation was used during the official inquiry into the disaster. This inquiry was held in Bradford Town Hall in September 1916. The idea of the missing Belgians and a sabotage plot was carefully checked. All the Belgians who were absent that day explained where they had been. The jury decided that the disaster was an accident. However, they did note that the company should have stored its materials properly. The fire most likely started when iron picrate caught fire. This was on top of the barrels.
The jury's verdict in September 1916 stated: "Died from … the result of an explosion of Picric Acid and consequent fire at the Low Moor Munition Works, Low Moor, Bradford aforesaid on the said 21st day of August last such explosion and consequent fire having been caused by the ignition of Picric Acid probably due to the presence of iron picrate on the receptacle containing such Picric Acid which was immediately outside a Magazine at such works where Picric Acid was being manipulated and that there was no negligence of a culpable or criminal character on the part of any person or persons."
Letters between the court clerk and Cooper-Key showed that the company was criticized. They didn't use a rubber loading platform. Instead, they moved barrels directly from wagons onto the stone floor. The company workers also didn't wear special overboots to prevent sparks. The barrels of acid were not covered in good weather. Covers should have been used always. This would stop dust and hot ash from nearby coal fires from touching the acid and causing a fire.
In 1919, 29 new houses were built on First Street in Low Moor. This allowed some families who lost their homes to move into new ones.
Another chemical plant, Allied Colloids, was very close to the old Low Moor Chemical Company site. It had a serious fire in 1992.
The original factory site is now a landfill that has been made into a park. But when it was first dug out, workers found cellars from houses destroyed in the explosion.
Awards and Memorials
The City of Bradford gave out 40 medals to those who tried to stop the explosions. Most went to the eighteen firefighters who were there that day. These medals became known as the Low Moor Medal.
In March 1917, Superintendent Forbes received the Albert Medal from King George V. This happened at a ceremony in Buckingham Palace. Forbes' quick actions after the explosion saved many lives. He also rescued several colleagues, including a senior fire officer. He collapsed after driving a fire engine away from the flames. Forbes' important role was not fully known until the 21st century. This might be because he and his family moved to Australia in the 1920s. He then stopped attending memorial services.
Firefighters' Memorial
In March 1924, a memorial was put up near the graves of the six dead firemen. It was in Scholemoor Cemetery in Bradford. Because of damage from vandals, it was moved in 2003. It is now at the West Yorkshire Fire and Rescue Service headquarters in Birkenshaw. Serving firefighters raised £25,000 to fix it up and move it. In 2019, the memorial was officially listed as a Grade II structure. This means it is an important historical building.
All Victims' Memorial
For a long time, there was no memorial for the other 34 people killed in the explosion. But on the 100-year anniversary of the disaster, a metal plaque was added to the firefighters' memorial. It remembers all 40 victims. This happened after a short thanksgiving service.
The Low Moor History Group paid for the plaque. They also researched all the dead. This was important because wartime rules meant not all victims had been identified. The plaque lists 28 workers from the factory, the six firefighters, three workers from Sharps Dyeworks, a policeman, a railway fireman, and one member of the public. The plaque is on a large rock on the Spen Valley Greenway. This is a cycle path that runs between Bradford and Dewsbury. It passes the site of the old chemical works at Low Moor.
In Popular Fiction
Frances Brody, who used to live in Wibsey in Bradford, wrote a novel called "Dying in the Wool". The 1916 Low Moor explosion is part of the story's background.
See also
- List of disasters in Great Britain and Ireland by death toll
- Largest artificial non-nuclear explosions
Images for kids
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The firefighters memorial at Birkenshaw
