Explosives Safety Training Yesterday, Today and Tomorrow
Abstract
Concerns for explosives safety and explosives safety training are not new. These concerns date back to the days of black powder when manufacturers were made to locate their facilities away from populated areas. Of course, this action usually occurred only after some catastrophic event. However, the need to isolate these kinds of operations and provide "explosives" safety was well recognized. The list of accidents and incidents is historically long and extends into the present. Over the years there has been great effort expended by the War Department and then the Department of Defense (DOD) to reduce the number and severity of accidents through training. The origins of this training appear to have taken place during the early 1900s. By the end of World War I, the United States had accumulated the largest stockpile of explosives and ammunition in its history. Part of this stockpile consisted of a relatively new explosive, smokeless powder. The fact that smokeless powder was subject to progressive decomposition and spontaneous ignition was noted early in 1919. This led to an extensive program to identify possibly hazardous quantities of smokeless powder and their locations, as well as other explosive material that may have had limited stability.
Document Details
- Document Type
- Technical Report
- Publication Date
- Aug 01, 1994
- Accession Number
- ADA507521
Entities
People
- John W. Gray
Organizations
- Defense Ammunition Center