Trains Collide, Explode in North Korea

Yahoo! News ^ | Thu, Apr 22, 2004

[Kaslin]

SEOUL, South Korea - Thousands of people were believed killed or injured Thursday when two trains carrying oil and liquefied petroleum gas collided and exploded in a North Korean train station, hours after leader Kim Jong Il passed through on his return from a China visit, South Korean news media reported.

The number killed or injured could reach 3,000, said YTN, South Korea (news - web sites)'s all-news cable channel, citing unnamed sources on the China-North Korea (news - web sites) border.

South Korea's Yonhap news agency, quoting sources in the Chinese city of Dandong that borders the North, said the explosion took place around 1 p.m. local time at Ryongchon, nine hours after Kim passed through on his way back to Pyongyang.

Ryongchon is about 12 miles from the Chinese border.

[dennis1x]

John Kerry reportedly hit by shrapnel from explosion.

[Mo1]

FNC just reported on this but they didn't have any other details

[Flux Capacitor]

First, prayers for the dead.

Second, fury that Kim Jong Il barely escaped being among them.

-Dan

[2banana]

John Kerry reportedly hit by shrapnel from explosion.

Three times...

[BenLurkin]

I'm guessing that the Red Chinese were rushing fuel into North Korea (must have reached some kind of understanding) and somebody simply didn't manage the rail traffic adequately.

Now . . . why would Red China be rushing fuel into North Korea?

[eyespysomething]

To help all the impoverished citizens somehow? ( I don't know if this should be /sarcasm or /idiocy)

[proud American in Canada]

How very sad.

[Pete]

The number killed or injured could reach 3,000,

Holy cow! That's horrible.

[CygnusXI]

3000?!?!

[Monty22]

wtf, 9/11 scale disaster from a train crash?

[OXENinFLA]

Thousands

!!!!

[Jeff Head]

Good question.

Another one is...Who will N. Korea blaim?

Such a tragedy could easily be used as a pretext and to fuel passions for war.

Could easily lead to a Dragon's Fury type scenario. I pray it does not.

[RichardW]

3,000. This is truly horrible.

[Mo1]

I'm thinking two trains carrying oil and liquefied petroleum gas would cause one heck of an explosion

[Quilla]

Thanks for the ping. Prayers for these poor, suppressed people.

[Bon mots]

Looks like in addition to a food shortage, they will now have a fuel shortage.

[OXENinFLA]

http://www.reuters.com/locales/newsArticle.jsp;:4087cb5b:e39564acef2090f9?type=worldNews&locale=en_IN&storyID=4908127

"The station was destroyed as if hit by a bombardment and debris flew high into the sky," Yonhap said, quoting the unidentified sources.

"We have not yet received official information on the accident. We are trying to confirm the report," a Unification Ministry spokesman said in Seoul.

[stylin_geek]

Something is wrong with this story. Yes, trains carrying LPG and oil can explode, but the way this is described it sounds like it went up pretty much when the two trains collided. Color me sceptical, but it seems to me there may be more than just LPG and oil involved here.

[Ready4Freddy]

*sigh* Timing is everything.....

...nine hours after Kim passed through on his way back to Pyongyang.