House Explosion in Pointer Ridge, January, 1974

A house at 902 Placid Court in Bowie's Pointer Ridge section exploded around noon on Sunday, January 20, 1974. The house was destroyed, but all eight occupants miraculously survived. According to the Washington Post, three nearby homes suffered serious damage, and nearly 30 homes suffered some damage. According to the Baltimore Sun, the blast was heard twelve miles away.

The cause of the blast was traced to a leaking propane tank. A resident in the home was running an auto body shop from the house's garage. According to the Baltimore Sun, the garage contained propane tanks, acetylene gas, gasoline and welding equipment.

The home was being rented at the time of the explosion.

Police recovered what they believed to be drugs from the scene, including 15 pounds of marijuana, hashish, LSD and amphetamines.

Click on one of the pictures to view a zoomed-in slide show.

The rubble left after the house at 902 Placid Court in Bowie's Pointer Ridge section exploded.

902 Placid Court

902 Placid Court

902 Placid Court

902 Placid Court

902 Placid Court

902 Placid Court. Note the helicopter in the background. Some victims from the explosion were airlifted to local hospitals.

902 Placid Court

According to the Washington Post, three other houses were seriously damaged from the blast, and about 30 houses suffered some damage. No one was home at this colonial next door to the explosion.

904 Placid Court

902 Placid Court

902 Placid Court

Officials check for natural gas leaks before cause of the blast was determined.

These pictures were posted as part of the Bowie Blade Pic Project, I've been posting pictures taken by Arnie Miles for the Bowie Blade between 1973 and 1975.

Photos of Bowie Maryland 1973 through 1975 by Arnie Miles is licensed under a Creative
Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0 United States
License

Other Bowie Blade Pic Project Posts

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BVFD Station 39 Firehouse Dog, January, 1975

These pictures of the Bowie Volunteer Fire Department Station 39 firehouse dog were taken in January, 1975.

Click each picture to see a larger image.

Firefighter Haught holding the dalmatian. The Belair Shopping Center can be seen in the background.

These pictures were posted as part of the Bowie Blade Pic Project, I've been posting pictures taken by Arnie Miles for the Bowie Blade between 1973 and 1975.

Photos of Bowie Maryland 1973 through 1975 by Arnie Miles is licensed under a Creative
Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0 United States
License

Other Bowie Blade Pic Project Posts

• Next: Suburban Trust Bank Opens Bowie Branch in 1975
• Previous: Belair Swim and Racquet Club, June, 1973
• All

Santa Rides Through Bowie

The sounds of sirens, air horns and bells can be heard throughout the early evening in Bowie this week. The Bowie Volunteer Fire Department is continuing their annual tradition of escorting Santa through the neighborhoods to pick up donations for the Bowie Food Pantry and to pass out candy canes to the kids. Click here to see the 2009 schedule.

Engine 192 (Huntington) escorts Santa through Bowie's Whitehall neighborhood.

A Real Firefighter?

Once each spring we get a visit from the Bowie Volunteer Fire Department. To be more specific, we get a visit from Doug Smith. Doug leaves the truck, helmet, boots and axe back at the station. He arrives in an old Buick, and his gear includes a clipboard, a pen and an easygoing manner.

Doug shakes down area residents for donations. The top of his clipboard contains numerous checks - neatly fanned out so that you can see the generosity of your neighbors. The reward for a contribution is a discount coupon for Sears Portrait Studio.

We always donate, despite not completely understanding the concept of a volunteer fire department in a county with nearly one million residents. Our kids enjoy the annual December visit from Santa riding on the fire truck, and last year we attended Company 39's fire prevention day events. I figure we have reasons to hand over a check.

Doug looks the part. He wears dark blue Dickies pants and a blue t-shirt with the department logo. You can just picture him hanging out with the other firefighters at the station.

I don't know why, but while Doug fills out the paperwork for our donation, I feel compelled to "talk shop." I might say something like, "I heard about that blaze over in the 'M' section. Apparently someone forgot about their empanadas on the stove." Or, "I saw your team working the rollover on old 450. The jaws-of-life can really come in handy."

Doug always gives a generic reply like, "oh, yeah."

Last year, my wife overheard my attempts at small talk. "Don’t be naive," she said after Doug left. "He's not a real firefighter. He's a fundraiser. Didn't you notice his beard? Firefighters don't have beards."

She seemed to make sense, but I had trouble accepting the fact that I might have been duped. Doug should prepare himself for a new round of questioning during his next visit.