HAMLET — Next week marks the 35th anniversary of an event that resulted in the loss of 25 lives: the Imperial Foods fire.
The city of Hamlet is hosting a memorial service at 10 a.m. Sept. 3 “to honor the lives lost and all those whose lives were forever changed by this tragedy.”
The service will take place at the corner of Bridges and Spears streets — the site of the former plant which now serves as a memorial to the victims.
Guest speakers for the service are scheduled to include State Fire Marshal Brian Taylor and Labor Commissioner Luke Farley.
The Imperial Foods fire is noted as the second-worst industrial disaster in North Carolina history, behind the Coal Glen Coal Mine explosion in 1925.
A ruptured hydraulic line above a fryer was the cause of the fire on that fateful day in 1991. But it was dangerous working conditions — including padlocked doors that prevented escape — that led to so many deaths and injuries.
In addition to those killed, more than 50 employees were injured “by burns, blindness, respiratory disease from smoke inhalation, neurological damage and post-traumatic stress disorder,” according to a 2020 blog article at the National Association of Safety Professionals website.
Also according to the NASP article, only 11 employees made it out unharmed.
The disaster led to “sweeping reforms for the Department of Labor and the Department of Insurance,” Insurance Commissioner Mike Causey said during the 30th anniversary in 2021.
A service commemorating the 25th anniversary was held at Cole Auditorium in 2016.
