The Great Fire of 1910
The Great Fire of 1910 (also commonly referred to as the Big Blowup) was a wildfire in the western United States that burned three million acres in North Idaho and Western Montana, with extensions into Eastern Washington and Southeast British Columbia, in the summer of 1910. The fire burned over two days on the weekend of August 20–21,
1937 Blackwater Fire
Today in 1937, the fourth deadliest wildfire in the nation's history, the Blackwater Creek fire was started by a lightning strike in the pine-filled Shoshone National Forest. The fire smoldered and crept through the ground fuels for two days before it was spotted by the owners of a local hunting camp. Initially, the smoke was rising vertically from the area of Blackwater Creek, however as the rangers and CCC enrollees neared the fire the smoke and flame grew in intensity.
1975 Philadelphia Gulf Refinery Fire
Today in 1975, one of the biggest oil refineries in the country - Gulf Oil Co. in Philadelphia - ignited in a fiery explosion. Hydrocarbon vapors escaped from a tank and accumulated near the boiler house causing it to explode.