Tripwire
Tripwire, a production of the Savannah Morning News, investigates the 1971 chemical explosion at the Thiokol Chemical Corp. plant in Woodbine, Georgia. The blast killed 29 people, predominately Black women, and injured nearly 50 others, leading to decades of legal battles between the families of victims and survivors, and the company and U.S. government.
- Update frequency
- every 6 days
- Average duration
- 20 minutes
- Episodes
- 8
- Years Active
- 2023
Tripwire, Episode 7: Remembering Woodbine
It's been more than 50 years since the Thiokol explosion. Today, it's remembered by two lines in history books. But one group aims to change that.
Follow along with our visual episode companion at S…
Tripwire, Episode 6: The Price of a Life
While the courts had come to a resolution on who was liable for the 1971 explosion at Thiokol, it wasn't the end of the road for many of the victims. The next years forced many survivors and family m…
Tripwire, Episode 5: The Normalization of Deviance
The dust had begun to settle in Woodbine and a new owner had taken over at the former Thiokol site. But the infamous day still lingered in the minds of survivors and victims as the legal battle began…
Tripwire, Episode 4: The Whole World Changed For Me
After February 3, things were different in Woodbine. Families were broken, mothers lost and Thiokol wanted everyone back to work soon. Condolences came in from President Richard Nixon to Georgia Gov.…
Tripwire, Episode 3: The Fire Had A Voice
LISTENER WARNING: There will be graphic descriptions of the explosion and its aftermath in this episode. Listener discretion advised.
February 3, 1971 seemed like any other day when Thiokol workers e…
Tripwire, Episode 2: Woodbine, We Have A Problem
As the U.S. was embroiled in the space race and the Vietnam War, Thiokol saw an opportunity in Woodbine in both realms. After securing a space contract with NASA, the prospect of 2,000 jobs in the sm…
Tripwire, Episode 1: We Sang While We Worked
Welcome to the town of Woodbine, Georgia. It's the end of the 1960s.
A small town in Camden County, Woodbine was selected to house the Thiokol Chemical Corporation plant, which provided ample employm…
Introducing Tripwire, a podcast investigating the 1971 Thiokol chemical explosion
Tripwire, a production of the Savannah Morning News, investigates the 1971 chemical explosion at the Thiokol Chemical Corp. plant in Woodbine, Georgia. The blast killed 29 people, predominately Black…