The Pacific Engineering and Production Company of Nevada (PEPCON) Disaster Collection of News Articles (1988-1992) consists of articles from Las Vegas and other state and regional newspapers about the PEPCON plant explosion that took place in May of 1988. Also included are United Press International press releases from October to December, 1988.
The Pacific Engineering and Production Company of Nevada (PEPCON) Disaster Collection of News Articles (1988-1992) consists of articles from Las Vegas and other state and regional newspapers about the PEPCON plant explosion that took place in May of 1988. Also included are United Press International press releases from October to December, 1988.
Collection is open for research.
Materials in this collection may be protected by copyrights and other rights. See Reproductions and Use on the UNLV Special Collections and Archives website for more information about reproductions and permissions to publish.
Collection is arranged alphabetically by Newspaper titles.
The Pacific Engineering and Production Company of Nevada, built by Fred Gibson, Sr. and two partners, began operating in 1958. The plant produced ammonium perchlorate, an oxidizer used in National Aeronautics and Space Administration's (NASA) space shuttle and the defense industry's Titan missile programs. The plant was built just southeast of Las Vegas, Nevada near the city of Henderson, Nevada, where Gibson's son James (Jim) served as Mayor from 1997 to 2009. Inexpensive hydro-power from nearby Hoover Dam and the dry climate was ideal for handling and storage of the product.
On May 4, 1988, a series of explosions rattled the plant and surrounding area. Company officials estimated about 4,500 tons of ammonium perchlorate were in the plant at the time of the explosion. A nearby natural gas pipeline was ruptured by the explosions, which resulted in large flames that were visible for miles. Two employees were killed and more than 300 were injured.
After the explosion, the plant moved to Iron County in Southern Utah and was renamed Western Electrochemical Company.
Source: http://www.clarkcountynv.gov/fire/Pages/PepconExplosion.aspx
Pacific Engineering and Production Company of Nevada (PEPCON) Disaster Collection of News Articles, 1988-1992. MS-00760. Special Collections and Archives, University Libraries, University of Nevada, Las Vegas. Las Vegas, Nevada.
Accession number: 96-25.
Collection was processed in 2017 by Joyce Moore.