It has been called “the most catastrophic refinery accident,” “the worst industrial accident in the nation” and “sounding and looking like the end of the world,” among other descriptions.
However labeled, the August 1955 explosion of 30 oil storage tanks at the Standard Oil refinery in Whiting proved to be a shattering experience, spooking not only residents in the immediate areabut also those living miles away.
Whiting resident John Hmurovic has written a book about the disaster, “One Minute After Sunrise,” and recently discussed details during a public forum at 659 Studio in downtown Whiting.
His focus to author the book came from the idea of making a permanent record from those personally involved.
“I love history and did not want this event to fade from the scene before those memories were collected,” he said. “This was one of the most significant events in Whiting history.”
The background for the new book began a few years ago, when Hmurovic and fellow Whiting/Robertsdale Historical Society members Frank Vargo and Gayle and Chuck Koselko conducted interviews and collected data of the event.
This information was recorded in video form, with that recording presented Aug. 27, at Whiting High School on Aug. 27, 2015, the 60th anniversary of the explosion.
Hmurovic decided to go a step further and expand the initial research — delving into newspaper reports and more. The ensuing result was the new book, which is available on Amazon.
“The National Guard was called out to keep order, and there was one woman who refused to cancel her wedding, although the fire was going on down the street,” he said. “We have all kinds of stories in this book.”
During the recent book signing at 659 Gallery, many audience members shared their stories.
Living close to the refinery at that time was Janet Kopacz, who lives in Schererville. The then-7-year-old was knocked out of bed when the “boom” went off.
“It was horrible, everyone was crying,” she said. “My mother thought the city was going to be destroyed and my grandmother said it was the end of the world.”
Along with her siblings, she was taken to an amusement park in Illinois to get away from what was happening, she said.
Highland resident Gene Hermann was living in Robertsdale at the time and was employed as a laborer at the refinery.
“It happened on my day off, but I was called in, along with many others,” he said. “Everyone was afraid it might blow again, so they needed as many men as they could find.”
Once there, he and fellow workers were briefed, literally.
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“The company didn’t give us much information, they just said to stay alert,” he said.
The sight of smoke and high flames were reported in many nearby neighborhoods, as well as hundreds of miles away. Firefighters from many Northwest Indiana communities came to assist, and the mayor of Chicago offered help if needed.
The fire, which lasted for eight days, began when a 26-story hydroformer exploded, according to newspaper reports. Apparently, a valve had malfunctioned, allowing oxygen and gas to mix.
This hydroformer was the largest of its kind in the country at the time, and Standard Oil was the fourth-largest oil refinery in the nation.
Two fatalities were recorded, as well as more than 40 people injured.
A 3-year-old boy was sleeping in a nearby residential area when a steel pipe blew through his house and killed him. His older brother, sleeping nearby, lost a leg at the same time. The surviving brother was one of those interviewed for Hmurovic’s book.
The other death was a refinery foreman that experienced a heart attack.
Millions in damage to the refinery was incurred, but the business was heavily insured, according to Hmurovic, and there was no hardship to their rebuilding of those areas.
Not so much regarding a nearby subdivision, where destruction spread. The Stiglitz Park area was leveled and never rebuilt.
Sue Ellen Ross is a freelance reporter for the Post-Tribune.