One of these guys for sure is to blame.
Posted on 04/23/2004 2:15:13 AM PDT by Oldeconomybuyer
North Korea has released information for the first time on yesterday's explosion in the northwest of the country, which caused many casualties.
Reports reaching neighbouring countries have said two trains carrying fuel oil collided at a station in the town of Ryongchon, causing an explosion that killed up to 3,000 people.
Speaking to RTÉ Radio from Pyongyang, the regional director of the Irish aid agency Concern, Ann O'Mahony, said North Korean officials had released information about the accident in response to requests from international representatives.
The officials said the explosion had been caused by dynamite and they gave much lower casualty figures of 150 dead and 1,000 injured.
Ms O'Mahony also said the authorities had invited foreign representatives, including the International Red Cross, to visit the scene tomorrow.
A state of emergency is reported to have been declared by North Korea.
Earlier, the US said it is willing to help if required.
Satellite pictures show large clouds of black smoke above the town. Reports say the collision appears to have been accidental.
Gee ... Just like what happened to Flight 800.
What the heck are they putting in that there diesel oil anyhoo?
If it was dynamite which did it, what was it doing next to trains carrying petroleum and liquefied natural gas? The whole picture is yet to be sorted out. Still confusing.
And Maxine Waters will give another set of speeches joining the little dictator in his blame against us.
Wouldn't surprise me anyway.
One of these guys for sure is to blame.
So what is the sequence of events? The train with explosives blew up first, and causing explosions in trains with petroleum and LNG parked in the same station? Or are petroleum and LNG are in storage facilities near the station? I say this because a S. Korean news report I read reports that there are storage facilities for fuel and LNG in that town. Petroleum and LNG seem to figure prominently into this accident one way or another. That would be my take at this time. Let us see what happens.
Hard to see how the toll is not going to be well into the hundreds if not thousands. The population of NK is estimated at around 20 million.
[snip] ...
North Korean officials said railworkers were trying to uncouple two carriages carrying dynamite and link them to another train.
"They got caught in the overhead electric wiring. The dynamite exploded and that was the cause of the explosion," O'Mahony said.
Russia's Tass news agency reported from Pyongyang that the explosives were to be used to build an irrigation canal... [snip]
Thanks for the update.
Yep. That sums it up.
The world isn't particularly or unusually violent at the moment. No idea where you're getting that impression.
There aren't any big full-scale wars going on right now at all. How often can you say that in world history?
Latest from the AP here:
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Reports also varied over what exactly exploded.
"What they've said is that two carriages of a train carrying dynamite - they were trying to disconnect the carriages and link them up to another train," she said. "They got caught in the overhead electric wiring, the dynamite exploded, and that was the cause of the explosion."
Sparrow said the trains were carrying explosives similar to those used in mining. China's Xinhua News Agency reported the blast was blamed on ammonium nitrate - a chemical used in fertilizers - leaking from one train. South Korea's unification minister said the trains were carrying fuel.
The blast leveled the train station, a school and apartments within a 500-yard radius, South Korea's Yonhap news agency said, quoting Chinese witnesses. It said there were about 500 passengers and railway officials in the station at the time of the blast.
North Korean officials invited foreign officials to visit the site of the disaster Saturday, O'Mahony said.
That should be enough time to completely conceal what really happened.
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