The 1948 Donora Smog - Pennsylvania Historical Markers on Waymarking.com

In October 1948, the smog, caused by fluoride emissions from the Donora Zinc Works and steel plants owned by the US Steel Corporation, reportedly killed 20 people while leaving many many more deathly ill. Fumes from US Steel's smelting plants blanketed the town for four days, and crept murderously into the citizens' homes.

The "Donora Death Fog," as it became known, spawned numerous angry lawsuits and the first calls for national legislation to protect the public from industrial air pollution.

A PHS report released in 1949 reported that "no single substance" was responsible for the Donora deaths and laid major blame for the tragedy on the temperature inversion. But according to industry consultant Philip Sadtler, in an interview taped shortly before his 1996 death, that report was a whitewash.

This information was obtained from the given link, which is only one of many sites with information about the disaster.


Marker text: Major federal clean air laws became a legacy of this environmental disaster that focused national attention on air pollution. In late October of 1948, a heavy fog blanketed this valley, and as the days passed, the fog became a thick, acrid smog that left about 20 people dead and thousands ill. Not until October 31 did the Donora Zinc Works shut down its furnaces--just hours before rain finally dispersed the smog.

Marker Name: 1948 Donora Smog, The County: Washington Date Dedicated: 10/28/1995 Marker Type: Roadside Location: Meldon Ave. (Pa. 837) at Fifth St. Category: Environment Website: [Web Link]

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