2010 PGI Convention - Appleton - Course Descriptions
#60 Enschede: Lessons to Relearn
On Saturday, May 13, 2000 in the city of Enschede, The Netherlands it was a hot, windy day and unusually dry for that time of year. Enschede is a small city of about 150,000 people located near the German and Belgian borders. In the early afternoon a small fire broke out at the S.E. Fireworks facility. The company was primarily an importer of fireworks that packaged and distributed them in Western Europe. It was located in a mixed industrial and residential neighborhood that was developed in the late 19th and early 20th century. In the next 34 minutes this small fire led to a series of powerful explosions that killed 22 people, including 4 fire fighters who were on the scene attempting to control the initial fire. Another 947 people were injured, many seriously with most injuries primarily due to flying glass and debris. The blasts and ensuing fires destroyed the S.E. Fireworks facility, over 400 homes and businesses, and heavily damaged many more. The damage was staggering and in this small, densely populated country it sent shockwaves through the entire population.