Comments on: Living Memory History: The Robin Hood Flour Mill Explosion

By: jeff gruber

jeff gruber — Mon, 14 Jan 2013 01:50:52 +0000

I have film of the damaged mill right after it happend

By: Jon k

Jon k — Sun, 13 Jan 2013 06:19:06 +0000

I was eating lunch at my desk at Eagle Signal, across the street from the mill. The blast actually made our building jump! Like everyone else, my first thought was the arsenal, but we quickly saw it was the mill.

Several of us headed to the mill to see what was going on. A crowd began to gather. I remember a fire captain arriving at the scene and taking charge pretty quickly. He yelled at the cops to set up road blocks on River Drive, and then yelling at a couple of us to “get these people out of here! It could explode again!”. That got our attention and we did what we were told, urging folks away from the site. The firemen stayed to do their jobs, of course, which gave me for the first time a realization of dangerous their job could be.

By: Wendy

Wendy — Mon, 05 Mar 2012 15:40:39 +0000

I was gazing out the window of my biology class at Central High School, towards the plant when the explosion occured. I saw a huge flash of light immeadiatly followed by a billowing cloud of black smoke. I heard constant sirens and helicopters after that. I heard when I got home from school that it was the Robin Hood flour plant.

By: Jo

Jo — Sun, 30 Oct 2011 20:39:46 +0000

I was home from school for lunch (in Bettendorf). We were used to the arsenal testing howitzers. Our house had so many cracks in the plaster that we gave up patching them. This explosion was different in a couple of ways.

First, it was louder and much more intense that the guns, even though they were closer to us. Second, when we found out what had blown up, my whole family breathed a HUGE sigh of relief. It hadn’t been that long before that my dad was working on the roof of the bins, sealing them again the elements. We knew there was a risk to his working so high up, but we weren’t aware that he could have been blown to kingdom come at any moment. As Mom used to say, thank goodness for small favors!

By: Alan Booker

Alan Booker — Wed, 31 Aug 2011 20:26:22 +0000

Not only my first visit to Davenport but, my first day in the USA. On hearing the explosion, the hotel staff told me it was a firing exercise at the arsenal. “Cool”, I thought, grabbed an Arsenal tour brochure and set off.
As I passed the smoking ruin of the mill, I realised that this appeared to be a real disaster and my interest in the arsenal suddenly evaporated. I had been hoping to see big guns beeing tested but suddenly, I was faced with the reality that people must have died in that tragic blast. A very sobering introduction to a country I have come to adore.
OK. It’s not so much the country as the fabulous QC friendships that have endured since that time.
I live in a nice English market town but, given the choice, erm, well I don’t have a green card so I don’t actually have that choice, so I guess I have to stay over here.

By: Bob Shear

Bob Shear — Thu, 23 Jun 2011 22:36:19 +0000

I was playing “foosball” in a bar & grill across the street from the mill when it exploded. We heard a boom and then the sound of concrete raining outside in the parking lot. A lot of damage to parked cars in the adjacent Eagle Signal lot. It was definitely one of those experiences you never forget.

By: Nancy

Nancy — Tue, 06 Jul 2010 01:16:02 +0000

I was working for Mast-Keystone in East Village. I was sitting on table in front of a window when the table and window shook.

By: Kay

Kay — Tue, 25 May 2010 15:39:39 +0000

I was working in downtown Davenport and the building shook. My sister worked for another grain company in the area, but knew some of the people who were injured and died.

By: Amy D.

Amy D. — Tue, 25 May 2010 14:12:18 +0000

I remember being taken to see the buildings after the explosion. Probably one of my earliest memories. My dad, by chance, saw it happen while standing in an Arsenal parking lot after a lunch meeting.