West Texas Fertilizer Explosion

[Chilingsworth]

Just... :smalleek:

Fatalities have already been confirmed. Another mass casualty event.

Just... :smalleek:

:smallfrown:

Apparently, the blast could be felt 70 miles away, the news says.

holy...

[Tvtyrant]

Another tragedy just a day after the last...

[Chilingsworth]

Another tragedy just a day after the last...

Yeah. This one's a doosie, too. (not to make light of it, but I can't say what I'd prefer to.)

50-70 homes, a 50 unit apartment building, a nursing home, a school or two all damaged, 75-100 buildings in all.

Plus toxic fumes...

Watching it on the news. They keep showing the "smoldering" remains of the fire that triggered the blast. They can't put it out due to the fumes and threat of secondary explosions.

Yeah, the "smoldering" looks like a mountain of fire.

[Octopusapult]

My country hasn't gone a day without an explosion or a poisoned letter sent to a government official since April 14th...

the hell is happening?

[Chilingsworth]

My country hasn't gone a day without an explosion or a poisoned letter sent to a government official since April 14th...

the hell is happening?

George Carlin's ghost getting his wish?

(Explanation, in one of his routines, Carlin said he likes disasters, and always wanted them to get worse. I could provide a link, but it would be so NSFW that I'd have to be far more foolish than I am to do so.)

Seriously, I'm starting to wonder if that isn't the explanation.

[Tvtyrant]

Yeah. This one's a doosie, too. (not to make light of it, but I can't say what I'd prefer to.)

50-70 homes, a 50 unit apartment building, a nursing home, a school or two all damaged, 75-100 buildings in all.

Plus toxic fumes...

Watching it on the news. They keep showing the "smoldering" remains of the fire that triggered the blast. They can't put it out due to the fumes and threat of secondary explosions.

Yeah, the "smoldering" looks like a mountain of fire.

There is a video on youtube of the explosion. They were recording the burning when it exploded. Next thing you know a power plant is going to go. :C

[PlusSixPelican]

Oh gosh not again...I hope those people are okay..

[Cikomyr]

There is a video on youtube of the explosion. They were recording the burning when it exploded. Next thing you know a power plant is going to go. :C

Here is the video caught of the explosion.

It's quite scary (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ROrpKx3aIjA)

[IsaacTheHungry]

Blast showed up on earthquake detecters. Listed as a magnitude 2.1, equal to a minor earthquake. :smalleek:

Edit: fire was first so first responders like firefighters and peramedics were on site when the explosion happened

[Tanuki Tales]

Wasn't there also a Chemical Plant that went up today in Texas as well?

[Asta Kask]

My country hasn't gone a day without an explosion or a poisoned letter sent to a government official since April 14th...

the hell is happening?

Random variability sometimes throwing up a large concentration of bad things at once?

[blackouttwo]

My country hasn't gone a day without an explosion or a poisoned letter sent to a government official since April 14th...

the hell is happening?

If you're suggesting all of these events are somehow connected, I really doubt it. If they are, I'll eat my non-existent hat. It's just too much in too short a span of time for any small network or lone operative to carry out.

Then again, I'm hardly an expert on anything that has to do with stuff like that.

For all we know, this was an accident.

[Octopusapult]

If you're suggesting all of these events are somehow connected, I really doubt it. If they are, I'll eat my non-existent hat. It's just too much in too short a span of time for any small network or lone operative to carry out.

Then again, I'm hardly an expert on anything that has to do with stuff like that.

For all we know, this was an accident.

I am not suggesting that any of these events are connected. The person sending the poisoned letters has been caught already, and they're saying they're decently close on finding the Boston Bombers. There are a lot of pictures up of the two major suspects.

I'm just saying there was a time when our biggest problem was finding out if President Clinton had sex with some girl...

[pendell]

If you're suggesting all of these events are somehow connected, I really doubt it. If they are, I'll eat my non-existent hat. It's just too much in too short a span of time for any small network or lone operative to carry out.

Then again, I'm hardly an expert on anything that has to do with stuff like that.

For all we know, this was an accident.

[tongue-in-cheek]

Maybe it's Lord Voldemort and all of this is actually death eater activity, with the ministry of magic wiping muggle memory after the fact so we all think it's natural?

[/tongue-in-cheek]

Respectfully,

Brian P.

[Chen]

I'm just saying there was a time when our biggest problem was finding out if President Clinton had sex with some girl...

Uh I seem to recall shortly before the trial where Clinton admitted he did have relations with Lewinsky a whole bunch of US embassies in Africa were all simultaneously bombed.

[angrymudcrab]

There is a very good chance this was an accident. It is a fertilizer plant and they were dealing with explosive chemicals. Explosives things are explosive. This doesn't mean it couldn't have been a terrorist attack, but given what they were working with, an industrial accident is quite possible.

Saying that there was a time all we worried about were presidential sexytimes is rather shortsighted imho. Even during Clinton's relatively peaceful presidency, we had a lot of things going on. We had the Oklahoma City Bombing, Waco, our intervention in the Bosnian War, and Blackhawk Down. Expanding it to before Clinton, we had the First Gulf War, several decades on the brink of global nuclear warfare with the Soviets, the Vietnam War, the Korean War(this one is still technically active and could flare up again depending on how loopy the North Korean government decide to be), WWII, The Great Depression, WWI, The Philippine Insurrection, The Spanish-American War, the Indian Wars, The Civil War, The Mexican War, The War of 1812, The Revolutionary War. We didn't exist before that, but as colonists we participated in a variety of wars against the French, Spaniards, and Indians on behalf of the British. The thing is, I've almost certainly forgotten several major events that had everyone in a panic at the time. There may have been times when things weren't as bad as they are now, but I don't think there was ever a time when we could just relax and not have some kind of crisis going on somewhere, and we have certainly been through a lot worse times. Even in those few times when it seemed like there was nothing going, all that meant was there was some sort of new trouble fomenting and we just hadn't noticed it yet.

Because a litany of how there is always some kind of war or crisis going on is depressing, here is a cat playing with some boxes. (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BCZ-pIcImIc&list=UURVruzlQF5cqpw9jQgIgNdw&index=3)

EDIT: Edited out a word since on reflection I'm not sure if it is board friendly. Meaning should be unchanged.

[DraPrime]

This is horrifying. My prayers are with the victims of this disaster. It's terrible that we have one tragedy after another this week.

[Killer Angel]

This is horrifying. My prayers are with the victims of this disaster. It's terrible that we have one tragedy after another this week.

Will it end, yes?
...yes, I know it will, but it's hard to bear, in the meantime. :smallfrown:

[Tanuki Tales]

Apparently Chicago is being plagued by sink holes and major flooding.

This month is really shaping up to be a beauty, isn't it? :smallsigh:

[Octopusapult]

There is a very good chance this was an accident. It is a fertilizer plant and they were dealing with explosive chemicals. Explosives things are explosive. This doesn't mean it couldn't have been a terrorist attack, but given what they were working with, an industrial accident is quite possible.

Saying that there was a time all we worried about were presidential sexytimes is rather shortsighted imho. Even during Clinton's relatively peaceful presidency, we had a lot of things going on. We had the Oklahoma City Bombing, Waco, our intervention in the Bosnian War, and Blackhawk Down. Expanding it to before Clinton, we had the First Gulf War, several decades on the brink of global nuclear warfare with the Soviets, the Vietnam War, the Korean War(this one is still technically active and could flare up again depending on how loopy the North Korean government decide to be), WWII, The Great Depression, WWI, The Philippine Insurrection, The Spanish-American War, the Indian Wars, The Civil War, The Mexican War, The War of 1812, The Revolutionary War. We didn't exist before that, but as colonists we participated in a variety of wars against the French, Spaniards, and Indians on behalf of the British. The thing is, I've almost certainly forgotten several major events that had everyone in a panic at the time. There may have been times when things weren't as bad as they are now, but I don't think there was ever a time when we could just relax and not have some kind of crisis going on somewhere, and we have certainly been through a lot worse times. Even in those few times when it seemed like there was nothing going, all that meant was there was some sort of new trouble fomenting and we just hadn't noticed it yet.

Because a litany of how there is always some kind of war or crisis going on is depressing, here is a cat playing with some boxes. (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BCZ-pIcImIc&list=UURVruzlQF5cqpw9jQgIgNdw&index=3)

EDIT: Edited out a word since on reflection I'm not sure if it is board friendly. Meaning should be unchanged.

well.... ****.

In slightly better news, they found the kids responsible, one of whom is dead, the other is being hunted through Watertown. Considered Armed and Dangerous, but there's an insane amount of people after him.

I'm sure by the time I post this there'll be a new development, but it is what it is.

[pendell]

body count now 12 (http://www.nytimes.com/2013/04/20/us/40-people-missing-after-texas-explosion.html?pagewanted=all&_r=0)

:smallfrown:

Prayers with the folks both in Boston and in Texas. Although of course more concrete methods of helping are not at all amiss.

Charitable donations? I know about the American Red Cross. Who else?

Respectfully,

Brian P.

[Octopusapult]

I'm not entirely sure. The only one I'm aware of is the Red Cross. Are the people making the Boston Strong Ribbons a different organization?

[Tebryn]

well.... ****.

In slightly better news, they found the kids responsible, one of whom is dead, the other is being hunted through Watertown. Considered Armed and Dangerous, but there's an insane amount of people after him.

I'm sure by the time I post this there'll be a new development, but it is what it is.

The kids responsible for the Boston Bombings, presumably. Not the Texas Plant Explosion. You really need to specify because we're talking about two as of yet unlinked events here.

[Octopusapult]

The kids responsible for the Boston Bombings, presumably. Not the Texas Plant Explosion. You really need to specify because we're talking about two as of yet unlinked events here.

I did. Watertown is in Massachusetts. You really need to read posts before telling me I did something wrong.

[pendell]

Suspect 2 in the Boston case has been captured alive.

story (http://www.cbsnews.com/8301-201_162-57580552/boston-marathon-bomb-suspect-in-custody-after-standoff/) .

Respectfully,

Brian P.

[Tebryn]

well.... ****.

In slightly better news, they found the kids responsible, one of whom is dead, the other is being hunted through Watertown. Considered Armed and Dangerous, but there's an insane amount of people after him.

I'm sure by the time I post this there'll be a new development, but it is what it is.


I did. Watertown is in Massachusetts. You really need to read posts before telling me I did something wrong.

I did read your post. You said "They found the kids responsible" after quoting a post about the Texas Plant Explosion in the thread about the Texas Plant Explosion. There are, with a quick google search, 11 states with cities named Watertown that are major cities. Even more that are minor townships littered around the U.S. Even in the thread about the Boston Bombings someone got confused. Watertown is a fairly common name and mentioning it off hand without any context in a thread about a different incident isn't actually being very specific. Just saying.

[Octopusapult]

I did read your post. You said "They found the kids responsible" after quoting a post about the Texas Plant Explosion in the thread about the Texas Plant Explosion. There are, with a quick google search, 11 states with cities named Watertown that are major cities. Even more that are minor townships littered around the U.S. Even in the thread about the Boston Bombings someone got confused. Watertown is a fairly common name and mentioning it off hand without any context in a thread about a different incident isn't actually being very specific. Just saying.

Considering we've known there were two suspects in the boston bombing for a while, you should have been able to use context clues. A quick google search will tell you what those are.

The important part is that the one of the kids is dead, the other is in custody. We'll hopefully get to hear what drove a 19yr old and his older brother to bomb a marathon.

As for the texas fertilizer plant, I haven't heard anything since the rumors of it just being an unfortunate accident and not something deliberate. But that's just rumor, not something I've seen in the news.

[KillianHawkeye]

Considering we've known there were two suspects in the boston bombing for a while, you should have been able to use context clues. A quick google search will tell you what those are.

We cannot use "context clues" when you post a comment without the proper context. Do you actually know what the word context means?

[Traab]

I did read your post. You said "They found the kids responsible" after quoting a post about the Texas Plant Explosion in the thread about the Texas Plant Explosion. There are, with a quick google search, 11 states with cities named Watertown that are major cities. Even more that are minor townships littered around the U.S. Even in the thread about the Boston Bombings someone got confused. Watertown is a fairly common name and mentioning it off hand without any context in a thread about a different incident isn't actually being very specific. Just saying.

Too be fair I only got confused because I live in Connecticut, which shares a border with Massachusetts. And as boston is only like, an hour away from my home town, when I heard watertown I got understandably concerned. I have friends that live there (in the ct version) Didnt even know there WAS a Mass town of watertown.

[Togath]

We'll hopefully get to hear what drove a 19yr old and his older brother to bomb a marathon.

What drove them to it was likely a (twisted and messed up) desire for attention, as this sort of thing is always blitzed by the media(to the point that a disturbing number of people don't even know about the west Texas thing, let alone the good things that have happened this month[such as finding Kepler-62E and 62F, or the fact that the mars mission when it happens, may now only take about a month instead of three years, due to recent advances in technology])

[Blightedmarsh]

I have only one question about the Texas fertilizer plant.

Why where they allowed to build that thing so close to the town?

[Togath]

I have only one question about the Texas fertilizer plant.

Why where they allowed to build that thing so close to the town?

well, it was further from town than the last one that exploded.. so.. sort of progress? Though you have to wonder why they still build them in the first place given the whole "prone to exploding" thing

[Traab]

well, it was further from town than the last one that exploded.. so.. sort of progress? Though you have to wonder why they still build them in the first place given the whole "prone to exploding" thing

Because the world requires truly epic amounts of fertilizer for so many things that it has to be produced somewhere, and having one big honking plant is better than 50 smaller ones in every state?

[Eldan]

Yeah. Agriculture just doesn't happen anymore without fertilizer. We dont' have enough soil to do it without fertilization. More people would starve without those factories than get injured when one explodes. Cynical, but that's how it goes.

Nitrogen fixation involves a lot of unpleasant ingredients. Chiefly, enormous heat in the thousands of degrees, crushing pressure, various unpleasant catalysts and of course nitrogen itself, which forms all manner of explosive compounds.

[Alejandro]

I have only one question about the Texas fertilizer plant.

Why where they allowed to build that thing so close to the town?

It was not built close to the town. It was built decades and decades ago, and the town built closer and closer to it. Blame lies on the town planners/leaders/whomever that didn't consider the danger.

In my own hometown, there's an old steel foundry that's in the middle of the southside. When it was originally built, there was no town in that area, it was on the far outskirts. But, as 100 years passed, the town grew around it.

[Tebryn]

I think the fault lies with the plant and it's owner/operates. Considering numerous safety violations and citations, lack of inspections and sitting on more than the limit of what they were allowed to store on site I think blaming the victims is a rather bad idea. Certainly whatever/whoever started the fire is to blame as well but the city? Not really.

[Traab]

I think the fault lies with the plant and it's owner/operates. Considering numerous safety violations and citations, lack of inspections and sitting on more than the limit of what they were allowed to store on site I think blaming the victims is a rather bad idea. Certainly whatever/whoever started the fire is to blame as well but the city? Not really.

Blaming the victims? Never. Blaming the people who allowed the town to grow too close to the factory? Thats acceptable. Blaming the factory for safety violations they never fixed? Also right. Its the factory owners fault it blew up. The damage to the school and nursing home and other assorted areas of devastation? Thats the fault of the people who allowed stuff to be built there. Its like building a house on the slope of an active volcano. Its not the volcanos fault your house catches fire and burns down when it erupts. Its yours for building there.

[Jonzac]

In the owners defense, they made the required notifications to the fire department that the ammonium Nitrate was there and the amount they had. This is a requirement with explosives so the fire department knows what is on site and how they need to fight the fire.

Remember this was a retail site, not a manufacturing site so the fertilizer was there to be sold to the local farmers.