Breaking news- Waco Explosion

JohnInTX

Joined Jun 26, 2012
4,787
We heard the rumble all the way up here in Dallas. Thought it was approaching thunder that was forecast. News is saying we lost some first responders and firefighters that were trying to put out the initial fire. The call is out for blood donors. Helos bringing burn victims as far as Parkland Hospital in Dallas.

Coordinates on the building Wikipedia article show just how close the plant was to homes and schools.

Its going to be a long night in West, TX.
 

THE_RB

Joined Feb 11, 2008
5,438
Just on the news now, a town near Waco Texas has had a big fire at the fertiliser plant causing an explosion.

News still sketchy re deaths and injuries, but they said 75 homes badly damaged, apartment block destroyed and nursing home and school badly affected.
 

edwardholmes91

Joined Feb 25, 2013
210
I'm really sorry to hear this. My thoughts and prayers go out to all of those affected. It seems surreal that first a bomb at the Boston Marathon and now this at a fertilizer plant should happen in such a short space of time.
 

Thread Starter

gerty

Joined Aug 30, 2007
1,305
Whichever Mod changed the title of this thread, THANK YOU for picking a better one than I did..
 

killivolt

Joined Jan 10, 2010
835
I hate thinking this but, the chances of this happening so close to the date of the "Waco Massacre April 19th" plus just 3 day's after the "Boston Attacks" seems very suspicious to me.

Authorities claim there is no connection, just an accident (Still, treating it as a crime). But, I would have to say it's just as soft a target as the "Boston Attack".

The individuals would also have to know, the level of destruction the plant would create. (The same type of chemicals used in the Oklahoma Explosion)


Right now the authorities will treat this as a crime, until they know for sure it was an accident.
 

Thread Starter

gerty

Joined Aug 30, 2007
1,305
I hate thinking this but, the chances of this happening so close to the date of the "Waco Massacre April 19th" plus just 3 day's after the "Boston Attacks" seems very suspicious to me.

Authorities claim there is no connection, just an accident (Still, treating it as a crime). But, I would have to say it's just as soft a target as the "Boston Attack".

The individuals would also have to know, the level of destruction the plant would create. (The same type of chemicals used in the Oklahoma Explosion)


Right now the authorities will treat this as a crime, until they know for sure it was an accident.
That's what I was thinking last night as it was happening.. Time, and investigation will tell how it happened. The news media was full of speculation last night.
 

JohnInTX

Joined Jun 26, 2012
4,787
Local outlets are reporting that the plant failed an inspection in 2006, resolved issues but hasn't been inspected since.

Texas, for all its good attributes, is not generally held as an example of workplace/environmental safety enforced by regulation/inspection.

Horrible all the same.
 

joeyd999

Joined Jun 6, 2011
5,234
Texas, for all its good attributes, is not generally held as an example of workplace/environmental safety enforced by regulation/inspection.
One shouldn't assume that government regulators are the end-all/be-all of safety. An inspector is human, just like anyone else, and can and does make mistakes. They cannot be at a plant 100% of the time to ensure continued conformance to safety standards -- only employees can do that.

I am sure this company had a "safety committee" composed of trained and knowledgeable employees. They would be crazy not to. Such a committee would be tasked with regular scheduled safety audits, and would (should!) be able to override management decisions regarding safety issues. I speak from experience...I spent some time as the chairman of such a committee and we were tough! We made the company spend money they didn't want to.

Ammonium Nitrate doesn't typically spontaneously detonate -- even in cases of fire. Generally, a mechanical shock is required, like the explosion from a blasting cap. In this case, there seems to have been a fire, and "The fire must [have been] confined at least to a degree for successful transition from a fire to an explosion". Pure speculation: such a fire could have been caused by a careless employee tossing a cigarette into a trash bin. No amount of regulation/inspection can prevent that!

Obviously, this is a huge disaster, especially in terms of lives and property lost. Things like this don't happen very often, but they do happen. Knee-jerk reactions like "there oughta be a law..." will not prevent them. Only a careful review of the safety procedures that were in place, and an identification of where they failed, can prevent this identical event from happening again.

Edit: Also, if it is determined that the cause was carelessness or willful negligence, the person(s) guilty of such should spend the rest of his/their natural lives in prison. There can be no excuse for such actions.
 
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loosewire

Joined Apr 25, 2008
1,686
I think it was neglect not to have a trained company fire team that knew all the

chemicals and reactions.,to hear residents they knew very about the plant. The volunteer

firemen may not have known much either. Like the race cars,there should have

been automatic fire equipment first line of defense. What do you think.
 
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