Scofield Mine Disaster

Date: May 1, 1900 • Location: Fairview, United States

A dust explosion at a coal mine near Scofield, Utah, U.S., killed at least 200 miners.

A dust explosion is the rapid combustion of fine particles suspended in the air within an enclosed location. Dust explosions can occur where any dispersed powdered combustible material is present in high-enough concentrations in the atmosphere or other oxidizing gaseous medium, such as pure oxygen. In cases when fuel plays the role of a combustible material, the explosion is known as a fuel-air explosion.