May 4, 1988, is a day people who have lived in the Las Vegas valley for a long time will never forget.
Why? Because the explosion at the PEPCON plant killed two and injured hundreds of others.
8 News NOW spoke with one of the first firefighters to arrive on the scene that day, and after 35 years on the Henderson Fire Department, Don Griffie is enjoying retirement as he runs a fire hydrant repair business.
But three decades later, the memories of what happened at the Pacific Engineering and Production Company of Nevada Plant are still fresh.
Don was in one of the first engines heading to the initial fire at the plant when the first explosion occurred.
"It blew, and we just reached our hands up and caught the windshield on the truck as it blew out," said Don Griffie, retired Henderson Fire Captain. "He stopped immediately, and we took it from the side, and I just turned around, and I said 'you know what, there ain't nothing there anymore, we're turning around and getting out of here.'"