Explosion at Taunton quarry sends debris flying near houses. Investigations initiated.

TAUNTON – Scott Schofield was working in his backyard at 175 Fremont St. when a “louder than normal” explosion came from the quarry, about 700 feet from his home. He remembers seeing debris hit some of the maple trees on his property.

A rock weighing about 2 pounds landed about 40 feet away from him.

“We’re not talking about small pebbles here; “Those were big rocks,” said Jennifer Elsinger, a resident of 179 Fremont St., who was “terrified” when the explosion from the Taunton Quarry at 203 Fremont St. sent rocks from the property into the surrounding neighborhood.

When the explosion occurred on the morning of April 29, Elsinger’s homeschooled children were inside but heard the debris ricocheting off some trains parked on the tracks next to which they live.

Schofield also heard the rocks hit the train cars, which he said had CO2 tanks attached to them, which “could have been a disaster” if the rocks had hit them.

Schofield and Elsinger don’t believe anyone was hit by the debris.

First reaction

Schofield first went to the quarry and informed management. He said that although site staff visited his property to inspect, he felt “they brushed off the whole thing.”

The Gazette reached out to the Taunton quarry and the northeast U.S. office of Holcim Industries, which owns the quarry, but received no response.

Schofield contacted the Taunton Fire Department about the incident and Elsinger called the mayor’s office.

Taunton Mayor Shaunna O’Connell confirmed via email that “an incident occurred at the Holcim Quarry in Taunton on Monday 29 April 2024 where debris from a quarry explosion caused stones to fall to the ground Left the quarry site.”

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Has this happened before?

Both Schofield and Elsinger agreed that nothing like this has ever happened since they have lived in the neighborhood for six and eight years, respectively.

Both said the quarry is noisy during the day, not only from the weekly blasting, but also from the trucks coming and going from the property. “Sometimes we hear the chiseling and beeping trucks as early as 6:30 a.m.,” Elsinger said. “It sounds like you live near a constant construction site.”

But both realize that noise is to be expected since they live near a quarry.

Schofield said the neighborhood was notified of the demolition plan via email, even though it was not on the list. A siren also sounds in the quarry, warning the neighborhood just before an explosion occurs.

The fire department investigated the incident

The mayor said the Taunton Fire Department has wide discretion in approving blasts within city limits. Each blasting permit is valid for 30 days. After the April 29 incident, the fire department stopped issuing a new blasting permit for the quarry while awaiting an investigation.

Captain Robert Bastis of the Taunton Fire Bureau told the Gazette that operations at the quarry had not stopped during this time; All other operations were allowed to continue.

Jason Guilmette of Maine Blast and Drilling, which performed the blasting at the quarry that day, said in a letter to Fire Prevention that the “fly rock” incident was believed to have occurred due to the timing of the resulting explosion in rubble , which fly vertically away from the property instead of remaining horizontal and in the quarry as intended. He added: “I will work with our technical services department on a timeline to avoid this in future blasts.”

O’Connell said the fire department recently completed its investigation and, based on information provided by Maine Blasting and Drilling, believes new procedures will be put in place “to ensure such an incident does not occur again.”

A press release from Taunton Fire issued on May 8 stated that the company that conducted the blasting and the owner of the quarry had the appropriate permits at the time of the incident on April 29. “This is an on-site blasting operation.” “A quarry that has been operating at this site for many decades will continue to monitor all blasting operations in the city and ensure all state and local regulations are followed to ensure the safety of the to ensure the neighbors and citizens of Taunton,” the press release stated.

The blasting permit for Taunton Quarry was re-issued on May 6th.

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