Explosion at the Grenelle gunpowder factory
Explosion at the Grenelle gunpowder factory, August 31, 1794 (19th century engraving)
In France, the first major industrial accident, in the modern sense, occurred in Paris on August 31, 1794. At that time, the Reign of Terror had created the need for swift mobilization of armed forces. The revolutionary government had thus concentrated production in only two locations, and began testing new manufacturing processes, including the refining of potassium nitrate (a component of gunpowder) and manufacture of the "black powder".
In February 1794, therefore, a gunpowder factory was installed at the Château de Grenelle, near Les Invalides. By June, it was producing 30% of France’s gunpowder. Its output was then increased at the request of the Public Health Committee. Initially designed to accommodate slightly less than 700 workers, the factory employed nearly 1,500 by the beginning of the summer.
On August 31, around 7:00 a.m., it erupted in an explosion that caused more than 500 deaths, over 800 injuries and damage to rooftops in the Saint Germain neighbourhood. Windows shattered in the Champs-Elysées, debris was found on the Chemin de Saint-Denis, more than 10 km away. It took a year to repair the damage to Paris that the explosion had caused.
