On November 19, 1946, one of the worst accidents occurred in the history of South Carolina, which left four to six people deceased, with another hundred to a hundred fifty injured.
Around 6:00 PM, 3,500 gallons of propane exploded at Ideal Laundry and Cleaners in Greenville. The blast was felt as far away as Gaffney on that autumn evening.
Before the accident, Ideal Laundry was at the corner of Buncombe and Echols Streets on the northern side of Greenville. The source, propane, was recently switched from coal when a leak in the tank was detected. E.R. Haynie, the facility’s manager, ordered the building evacuated.
Minutes after the leak was detected, the propane leaked into the basement, where the boilers were located, igniting the gas.
According to online reports, the explosion destroyed twenty structures and severely damaged fifty other buildings.
Today, the lot is home to a Starbucks. But, seventy-eight years ago, the explosion here would forever pen a chapter in South Carolina’s Haunted History.
Written By: John G. Clark Jr.
Image By: John G. Clark Jr.