A fire at the Pacific Engineering and Production Company (PEPCON) chemical plant in Henderson, Nevada, United States, caused a series of massive detonations of ammonium perchlorate, a powerful oxidizer used in rocket boosters. The explosions leveled the facility, caused widespread damage to the surrounding Las Vegas valley, killed two people, and created shockwaves that were recorded by local seismographs. The accident was captured on video, offering a rare study of industrial shock propagation.

The dramatic video footage of the PEPCON blast deeply affected American media-conscious poetry and postmodern prose. Writers used the image of the expanding shockwave tearing through suburban desert communities to critique the unseen dangers of the military-industrial complex.