🚀 go-pugleaf

I went on the tour at the Weirton Steel mill on Friday.  It was great!

They let us right down on the steel mill floor, within about 15' of the
hot metal bars as they work their way along the rollers.  Pretty
thrilling!  (but not for the squeamish).  We also walked right by the
galvanizing machine as they pulled sheet metal up through a vat of
molten zinc!  The tour gave me a better understanding of what "Steel City"
must have been like a few decades ago.

I was on another steel mill tour (Inland Steel, in Gary, Indiana) years ago
and that tour unfortunately kept us hundreds of feet away from the action.
It was great to be up close to the action at Weirton, feeling the heat
radiating from the red-hot metal as it cruised down the line.

Notes from the tour:

Weirton Steel almost went out of business in the late 80's but the employees
got together and bought the company, cut the work force, and modernized their
mills.  They're the largest tin plated steel maker in the world (like for
soup cans) and the largest employer in the state of West Virginia.

The drive to Weirton took one hour during light traffic.  You drive
most of the way to the Pgh airport, then take route 22/30 to Weirton,
W. Va. (call Weirton Steel for detailed directions).  The only traffic
is between Pgh and the 22/30 turnoff.  Our tour took 3.5 hours (but we
asked a lot of questions).  There were three of us, plus a guide, who
was a retired Weirton worker with 43 years on the job.  I recommend you
wear shoes or boots that you don't mind dirtying, since you'll be
walking on oily floors and there might be puddles.  The same for
clothes.  It's filthy in there!  It's also very loud in the mill at
times.  The guide makes sure that you're never in danger, however.
Tours are given every Monday and Friday, and the last Saturday of each
month.  No kids under 16 are allowed.  The tour is free.  Call
304-797-5123 for reservations.

Contrary to my previous message, Weirton is WEST of Pittsburgh, not east.