Abstract: On September 24, 2001, Employee #1 of River Recycling, Inc. was involved in charging the rocker furnace with scrap materials to produce red brass CDA 836. The furnace was cooling from the previous pour, and the gas burner was turned off and disconnected from the furnace. After adding the last load of material, which included oily Babbitt and flux, which consisted of sodium nitrate and borax, employees from River Recycling, Inc. reported seeing a brief flame, large amounts of smoke, sparks, and then the explosion. The force of the explosion damaged the furnace and caused structural damage to the building. Employee #1 was thrown by the blast to the back of the room, and was found by emergency personnel under a collapsed wall. Employee #1 died from the injuries sustained in the blast and the collapsing wall. Some of the Babbitt used during the shift, but not used before the explosion was contaminated with aluminum. The explosion may have been caused by combining incompatible materials, including but not limited to organic oil, aluminum, and sodium nitrate.