Enschede fireworks disaster
The suburb of Roombeek on fire | |
| Date | 13 May 2000 |
|---|---|
| Time | c. 15:00 CEST (UTC+02:00) |
| Location | Enschede, Netherlands |
| Coordinates | 52°13′49″N 6°53′36″E / 52.23028°N 6.89333°E |
| Type | Fireworks disaster |
| Deaths | 23 (22 directly, 1 indirectly) |
| Non-fatal injuries | 950 |
| Property damage |
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The Enschede fireworks disaster was a catastrophic fireworks explosion on 13 May 2000 in Enschede, Netherlands. The explosion killed 23 people including four firefighters and injured 950 others. A total of 400 homes were destroyed and 1,500 buildings were subsequently damaged.
The first explosion had a strength in the order of 0.8 tons of TNT (3.3 GJ), while the strength of the final explosion was in the range of 4–5 tons of TNT (17–21 GJ). The biggest blast was felt as far as the city of Deventer, 50 kilometres (31 mi) away. Fire crews were called in from across the border in Germany to help battle the blaze; it was brought under control by the end of the day.
S.E. Fireworks was a major supplier to pop concerts and major festive events in the Netherlands. Prior to the disaster it had a good safety record and had passed all safety audits.