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Explosion at a Fertilizer Plant in West Texas


CowgirlsFan

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This is always in the back of my mind when we handle petrol-chem. @ my work there is a lot of chem like fertilizer, nitrate, potassic (always wondered why they push that crap through water), petrol like jet fuel, gasoline, kerosine, fuel oils, etc... that makes it way on the water from places like Houston, Tulsa, OK, NOLA and all points in between. Usually in jumbo (300'x54') tank barges pushing 3,200 TON a piece. Sometimes a tow will be configured with a 2 or 3 pack in a single lockage. We always get guff from po'd pleasure boaters because they can't lock through with that stuff. Sure, just let me pack 30 vessels, each with drunken idiots on board, in w/9,600 ton of "boom boom" commodity! What can possibly go too terribly wrong! The whole neighborhood would light up!

 

We get even more guff when the barges are empty and recreational craft still can't lock through. Empty petrol-chem barges can be just as dangerous... If not easier to get lit. Especially stopped and tied up in the pit... In the end, my goal is to get the petrol-chem vessels through as quickly as possible with minimal stopping. Send it on its merry way! If it is gonna blow up, please do it somewhere else!

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I know there are some pretty low forms of life out there (like most politicians) but this type of person might challenge them for the title of scum of the earth. From Fox's report on the blast

 

"Swanton said a "small amount of looting" has occurred near the blast site, but he did not provide additional details. He said looters are a "significant concern" to authorities and that at least one person suspected of being a looter was spotting running from a damaged home"

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I honestly do not understand why they'd put a fertilizer plant and any sort of housing that close together. What, they can't move the warehouse a half-mile out?

You're obviously assuming ZONING? In Texas?? :flirt:

 

I would guess that the plant was there well before anyone else decided to live there. Kind of like people complaining about Airport noise when the Airport has been there since 1930!

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Why haven't they arrested anyone for it yet? This must be a conspiracy.

 

Come on Tom, everyone know it takes exactly 48 hours to identify a suspect.

 

Well everyone except Joe the Dunce Cap

Edited by Chef Jim
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I honestly do not understand why they'd put a fertilizer plant and any sort of housing that close together. What, they can't move the warehouse a half-mile out?

 

Zoning Regulations would be stepping on the rights of the corporation in Texas. And we cant have that happening.

 

west_texas_fertilizer_plant_blast_map.jpg

 

Why haven't they arrested anyone for it yet? This must be a conspiracy.

 

Someone will go down. The company was storing 1350 times the amount of explosive material than allowed/reported.

 

http://www.reuters.com/article/2013/04/20/us-usa-explosion-regulation-idUSBRE93J09N20130420

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