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In 2022, I researched the Triangle Refinery fire in Doraville. The fire began with an overfilled storage tank. Vapors from the overfilled tank reached nearby homes on Doral Circle and ignited a pilot light at one of the homes causing an explosion. The explosion then set three storage tanks on fire. (Atlanta Constitution, April 7, 1972, “Killer gasoline fire rages into 2nd day”)
Alan Wilson was attending Henderson High School in 1972 and had just started a new job at the Embry Hills Winn Dixie on Chamblee Tucker Road near I-285. Wilson recalls seeing flames from the grocery store. Wilson brought the tragic fire to my attention when he reminded me that it had been 50 years since it took place. Even though I also was attending Henderson High School in 1972, I only have a vague memory of the fire.
300 people were evacuated from their homes, staying at nearby elementary schools, hotels, or with friends and family. Suzanne Kingsley, who lived less than a mile from the explosion and was a seventh grader at Doraville Elementary, remembers evacuating their home to stay at a hotel for a week.
A woman who lived close behind the tanks shared her experience of that day with Jeff Boggs. She remembered waking to a huge explosion and seeing a bright light. Next, her mother screamed for everyone to get in the car so the family could get away quickly.
Todd Drummond was five years old, living with his family adjacent to the refinery on Doral Circle. Somehow their home was spared. You can read his story in my June 12, 2022 post, “Drummond family narrowly escapes Doraville Triangle Refinery fire of 1972.”
Two people died from the fire, a Triangle Refinery employee and a resident from Doral Circle.
Firefighters were overcome by the heat with at least 20 going to nearby hospitals. DeKalb Fire Chief Dudley Martin suffered from the heat but refused to go to the hospital. After one hour of rest, he returned to overseeing the firefighters. (Atlanta Constitution, April 7, 1972, “Intense heat fells firemen like flies”)
The flames were said to have been visible from downtown Atlanta office buildings, north Georgia and even Alabama.
In addition to Triangle Refinery, twelve other companies had storage tanks at the Doraville gasoline storage yard. Firefighters doused adjacent tanks with water to prevent more explosions.
Bruce Mitchell’s father was one of the DeKalb County Firemen called in to battle the fire. That day is still vivid in Mitchell’s mind, “I remember the explosion that shook our home in the Huntley Hills Area. I also remember getting close and watching my father.”
DeKalb historian and Chamblee High School alumna Vivian Price Saffold remembers it well. She covered the fire for the DeKalb News/Sun newspaper and recalls meeting firefighters from all over the country as they came to Doraville to help fight the fire. She and a colleague from another newspaper climbed on a railroad car to get photographs.
Firefighters, police officers, and nurses all volunteered to assist at the site. Citizen Band radio groups helped rally volunteers who brought food, coffee, flashlights, bedding, and ice. (DeKalb History Center Archives, DeKalb New Era, April 13, 1972, “Doraville fire start may have been fumes”)
The intense flames and heat of the Doraville fire of 1972. Photo from DeKalb Fire and Rescue.
The sight of the huge flames, the smell of smoke, and the heat are intense memories of those who lived nearby.
Following my first article in the Dunwoody Crier about the 50th anniversary of the fire, some people who remembered those days in 1972 shared their memories with me. I also had the opportunity to speak with firefighters who were there, fighting this horrific fire. I’ll share those parts of the story in the next two blog posts.