On April 16, 1947, the French vessel SS Grandcamp, carrying
ammonium nitrate fertilizer, exploded in the port of Texas City,
just north of Galveston, Texas. Nearly 600 people died instantly
and property damage reached catastrophic proportions. The Texas
City disaster remains, to date, the worst industrial accident in
U.S. history. Among those killed was William Roach, a Roman
Catholic priest known affectionately as Father Bill. Sitting on a
Keg of Dynamite, by historian John Neal Phillips, tells the
remarkable story of Father Bill's life and premature death against
the backdrop of the rapid growth-and near destruction-of an
American industrial city. Through extensive archival research and
oral interviews, Phillips pieces together previously unknown
details of Father Bill's story to present a well-rounded portrait
of the man who is today revered as a hero. Born in Philadelphia,
Roach attended seminary in Arkansas before he went on to serve as
parish priest for St. Mary of the Miraculous Medal in Texas City.
Restless, energetic, and beloved for his humor, tolerance, and
empathy, Father Bill was an outspoken advocate for poor and
working-class citizens, fair wages, and workplace safety. One
evening, as Phillips vividly recounts, Roach sat on the church
steps, looking out at the strange orange-yellow light created by
hydrocarbon gas flares emerging from nearby oil refineries. "I feel
like I'm sitting on a keg of dynamite," he told parishioners who
were passing by. His premonition proved prophetic. When a fire
erupted onboard the Grandcamp, Father Bill hurried to the docks to
lend assistance. It was then that the ship detonated. There is
still much to be learned from the Texas City disaster-and from the
legacy of Father Bill, an early crusader for social justice in
America. Descendants of the disaster victims received financial
reparations, and yet, as Phillips cautions, safety and
environmental regulations barely exist in Texas today, particularly
when it comes to the petrochemical industry. Sitting on a Keg of
Dynamite serves as a cautionary tale for Texans-and all
Americans-as environmental accidents continue to threaten our
safety.
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