The Snapshots in Time Collection
Wreckage at Southern Pacific Roseville Yard After Ordnance Train Explosion, August 1973
In April 1973, a train of Navy bombs bound for Vietnam caught fire and exploded in a series of blasts at the Southern Pacific rail yard in Roseville, California, injuring dozens and devastating the surrounding yard. This photograph, taken in August 1973 during the extended cleanup, documents the twisted remains of railcars thrown from the tracks -- a stark record of one of the era's most significant homefront accidents tied directly to the logistics of the Vietnam War. Project: 218336