MARION, S.D. (KELO) — Sunday is the 40th anniversary of a grain elevator explosion in Marion. It took the lives of three people.

Marion residents may never forget November 2, 1985.

“It was such a tremendous explosion that everybody just knew that something happened,” Duane Tieszen said in 1985.

That was then Mayor Duane Tieszen 40 years ago. He and his wife, Marlys, still remember that day well.

“We were just sitting at the table and going to have some ice cream, and we had set some bowls on the table. All of a sudden, we heard this tremendous loud banging and noises, and the bowls on the table actually started to rattle on the table,” Duane Tieszen said Sunday.

“I was baffled. I had no idea what that could be until he looked out and said, ‘The elevator. It’s the elevator,'” Marlys Tieszen said Sunday.

RCFD participate in live fire training to prepare for structure fires

They were both quick to respond.

“We could see the fire, and I said, ‘Grab your ambulance jacket. We’ve got to go,” Duane Tieszen said Sunday.

First responders did everything they could to rescue everyone on site, but the explosion took the lives of 3 people– Keith Schoenwald, Delbert Dick and Roger Schultz.

“One gentleman, I actually had worked at the same place for a while with him. One of them was my niece’s husband, and the other one was a young fellow. It was devastating,” Duane Tieszen said Sunday.

The elevator was eventually repaired and expanded, and it still stands in Marion to this day.

“If that stopped, there were a lot of people who would be looking for jobs, so the community was very much in support of keeping this thing going,” Duane Teiszen said Sunday.

But it also remains a reminder of that tragic day 40 years ago.

“I think every November 2nd, it’s spoken. It’s remembered,” Marlys Tieszen said Sunday.

“We still hurt for the people that lost their lives that day. Those families will never forget it. We’ll never forget it. It’s just one of those things that you don’t ever want happening,” Duane Tieszen said Sunday.

The explosion also seriously injured four others.