It’s fairly easy to coast past the little town of West, Texas and miss the entire place. Some may stop for a 10 minute kolache break at the famous Czech Stop, but often the cars whizz past as they travel down Interstate 35 and miss the entire town. Not only do the passing cars miss the Czech kolaches, a quaint town square and charming homes, but they also pass by the site of one of the biggest disasters to ever hit a Texas town.
THEN
Wednesday, April 17, 2013 shook the town of West to a new extreme.
“I was here in town [the night of the explosion]. We had just gotten back from a regional track meet which was held out of town,” West High School Vice Principal Jeremy McCain said.
The explosion hit the town at 7:50 p.m.
At 1471 Jerry Mashek Drive, The West Fertilizer Company plant had caught fire. Rescue teams and firefighters rushed to the scene just in time for the fire to reach the plant’s ammonium nitrate supply and explode. The result was a grave one. With the death of 15 community members, injuries to more than 160 people and more than 150 homes damaged or destroyed, the fire was no longer a horrible accident. It was a traumatic tragedy.
“Homes within about a six block radius [from the site], were damaged beyond the point of people being able to return to live in their homes,” McCain said.
Response to the disaster was immediate. The Red Cross took action and set up their relief station at the local rodeo grounds.
“Red Cross was there providing a lot of different support. There were meals, supplies of fresh water for folks that needed it, they were involved in the organization and distribution of donated materials, supplies and clothing, things like toothbrushes and other things that people don’t think about,” McCain said. “They continued to be on site for a period of time, they helped arrange counseling services and things like that that people might need. A number of different organizations that have disaster outreach response, and they were very helpful, they were prepared and trained. There were temporary shower facilities and places to do their laundry. People didn’t even have to leave city limits in order to have their needs met.”
Not only did The Red Cross and other disaster relief organizations help, but the community members aided in sheltering their friends and classmates. Families took in others, fed, clothed and aided them in piecing their lives together after they were blasted apart that fateful day.
“One of my favorite images from that time is a picture of a Red Cross temporary shelter set up across the way at Abbott ISD across the way, and it’s a picture of a ton of empty cots lined up in rows, and they stayed empty,” McCain said. “Nobody needed them, not to say we didn’t appreciate them, but everybody had a place to go with friends or family.”
The Lawsuit
So what was the cause of the major devastation and could it have been avoided? The town of West decided to get to the bottom of it through the court rooms.
Nearly $100 million in property damage was inflicted, but only $83 million of that would be covered by insurance. That left a deficit of $17 million; one that may be recovered through the lawsuits still working their way through the judicial process.
More than 100 people, businesses, the local school district and the city of West have filed lawsuits against Adair Grain Co., the operator’s of the fertilizer plant. Lawsuits have also been filed against CF Industries, the company that supplied the ammonium nitrate to the plant. The first trial is expected to begin in January.
NOW
A year after the explosions, countless questions still remain with some answers coming soon. Both the state fire marshal’s office and the U.S. Chemical Safety Board will be releasing reports later this month that should shed some light on the night of April 17, 2013.
On most days, as you enter West, the town is quiet. Bob and Marge’s 70th Anniversary is recognized on the town hall sign, the streets are cracked and the neon painted, with stars of hope following you wherever you go. West has been tattooed with these stars as they fill trees, yards and memorials. They decorate the town to celebrate the unity and strength of the community after the crash.
The flag in front of the medical center flies half mast and tattered, the street signs are still smoothly curved from the force of the blow bending them like a sail on the windy water and many homes are left only to be visited occasionally by nosey high school reporters and partying teenagers, who leave their empty beer cans in either disrespect or a drunken carelessness.
Despite all this, the tight knit town has only gotten closer through this devastating blow.
“Just about everyone had a family member or they were affected themselves by the explosion,” West High School technology teacher Pam Woodard said. “I don’t want to say we are in full recovery mode, but we are getting there.”
A bleary ghost cloud still hangs over the town. Though collapsing basketball courts and unusable school buildings still litter the grounds, life in West continues; the community continues to welcome roadtrippers with open arms, bake their toasty warm kolaches and tip their hats to Bob and Marge’s 70th Anniversary.
Check back tomorrow for more about this little town’s recovery.
