Fire and Explosion at Nosler Plant
Fire and Explosion at Nosler Plant in Bend, Oregon
At around 2:15 on the afternoon of June 2nd, there was a fire and explosion at the Nosler production plant in Bend, Oregon. Apparently the accident started in the ballistics tunnel testing area. Employees reported a flash, then smoke followed by a "massive explosion" which was felt many blocks away. One employee who saw a bright flash alertly activated a fire alarm which helped speed the evacuation process.
Video report
Thankfully, all the roughly 100 Nosler employees were able to evacuate safely, and there were apparently no serious injuries. The fire and explosion did do significant damage to the 80,000 square foot Nosler building. When fire crews arrived, they found major damage to the southeast corner of the Nosler plant, with thick smoke still pouring out.
Damage could run into the millions of dollars. A number of city blocks were evacuated and cordoned off. Right now the cause of the fire and explosion remains unknown, but the Bend Fire Department, state police agencies, and the federal BATF are commencing investigations.
News story
Best.
At around 2:15 on the afternoon of June 2nd, there was a fire and explosion at the Nosler production plant in Bend, Oregon. Apparently the accident started in the ballistics tunnel testing area. Employees reported a flash, then smoke followed by a "massive explosion" which was felt many blocks away. One employee who saw a bright flash alertly activated a fire alarm which helped speed the evacuation process.
Video report
Thankfully, all the roughly 100 Nosler employees were able to evacuate safely, and there were apparently no serious injuries. The fire and explosion did do significant damage to the 80,000 square foot Nosler building. When fire crews arrived, they found major damage to the southeast corner of the Nosler plant, with thick smoke still pouring out.
Damage could run into the millions of dollars. A number of city blocks were evacuated and cordoned off. Right now the cause of the fire and explosion remains unknown, but the Bend Fire Department, state police agencies, and the federal BATF are commencing investigations.
News story
Best.
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Good to hear that no one was seriously injured or worse.
I remember reading about gun test writers who shoot from inside a structure to outside and they have a barrel setup that they are shooting through. I can't remember the reason, perhaps sound abatement, etc. In any event, one writer mentioned the buildup of unburned powder accummulating in the barrel and speculated on what would happen if the power ignited.
I wonder if this happened here.....0 -
glad everyone made it out and is ok
looks like i will be looking for a different boolit to push out the 300 win mag as supply (or lack there of) and demand pricing kicks in later on this summer
mmm bergers [:p]0 -
NN, Thank you for the info. appreciated! I will endeavor to keep up on the latest regarding this event. Take care. 0 -
I was in an indoor range when accumulated powder imbedded in the soundproofing of a stall went off in a flash fire. Muzzle flash from a pistol shooter set it off.
There were toxic fumes and the range was evacuated.
The Nosler event sounds like a lot more.
In our indoor club range, I was told powder is found on the floor five feet or so from shooting positions that needs to be regularly cleaned up.0 -
I live just north of Bend and have enjoyed Nosler bullets for a long time. I'm thankful that no one got killed; it could have ended much differently. Whoever saw the flash fire had the presence of mind to pull the fire alarm and this gave everyone enough time to evacuate before the blast. Hopefully, they can rebuild. From the pictures, it looks like the whole place was gutted. They had been running at full capacity for quite some time. News today said that employees were allowed back in the building to try and retrieve documents. 0 -
The Millenium Design Muzzleloader factory in No. Conway , NH blew up a couple weeks ago . There were three people in the plant at the time , two of them were killed . They stored and distributed one of the blackpowder substitutes , and that is what exploded . I guess windows broke for miles around , and there was still a shell of the metal building standing . 0 -
airmung,
Any new information or reports will be appreciated by the members. I don't have the time to track down the local reports and someone close to the source might have a better access to the reports.
Thanks!
Suppositions as to the cause and the resultant availability and prices are way too early in the process. It's anyone's guess as to what started this and with the condition of the market and supply/sales for components, we'll be hard-pressed to guess the impact on prices.
Best.0 -
Late the day of the explosion I read that a fire started while someone was testing ammunition. He pulled the alarm and got out, as did everyone else. The fire then backfed from the ammunition testing tunnel to the lab/reloading area where a larger fire ensued. That fire was then supposedly what set off powder hoppers, which was the explosion.
How someone knew this the day of the explosion, I don't know. Especially since I read today that the area that was destroyed was mostly old paper records. That seems odd to me as Nosler seems to be a little more on the up-and-up than most companies and housekeeping would not seem to be an issue to maintain. Certainly not the kind of housekeeping/safety procedures that should be in place to have a 3-point chain reaction like that.
Still waiting for more information like everyone else. The good news is they may be back producing bullets as soon as 30 days.
One side note: I'm annoyed at the news coverage there who stated first and foremost that Nosler was an Ammunition manufacturer. They are first and foremost bullet manufacturers, who happen to produce some good custom ammunition. I'm hoping they can stay on track.0 -
quote:Originally posted by nononsense
Suppositions as to the cause and the resultant availability and prices are way too early in the process. It's anyone's guess as to what started this and with the condition of the market and supply/sales for components, we'll be hard-pressed to guess the impact on prices.
Best.
store shells (here) are bare now of nosler products this unfortunate event will not help that, they will be weeks if not months dealing with the insurance company. I would assume it will be 9-12 months before any new product is coming out of the doors
glad I which to bergers had I been able to obtain noslers before now i wouldn't have0
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