seems that if terrorists were going to do it, they'd hit the storage tank farms for the Shock and Awe the giant fires would make for days
Posted on 03/27/2005 5:24:42 PM PST by Down South P.E.
Terror in Texas?
Two separate Islamist groups have claimed responsibility for that explosion at a Texas chemical plant that killed 15 and injured more than 100. In an Internet statement, the Army of the Levant said it was behind the blast. But another group calling itself the al-Qaeda Organisation for Holy War in the United States of America promised to issue a video of the attack to prove it was responsible. The FBI says neither one of them was responsible, they've ruled out terrorism as the cause of the blast.
If you remember the big black out we had a while back, Al Quada also tried to claim responsibility for that.
Dang vigilantes taking up the border patrol's time
and distracting them from keeping out terrorists
The WTC on 9-11-01 would have probably been identified as an accident had it not been for that pesky 2nd plane hitting the second tower, and that one hitting the Pentagon, and that one crashing in Pennsylvania.
After all, Flt 587 was just an accident----wind ripples. And TWA 800. And Murrah/OKC was just 2 white guys in a .... yellow car [pay no attention to the Middle Eastern-looking guys in some of the videos].
It actually happens a lot these days [that is ruling it accidental quickly], but usually it's ATF that performs the investigation not the FBI. I worked on a fire last week that was ruled accidental by ATF, but myself and two other investigators categorized it as undetermined until we complete our investigation. Our opinions as to where the fire originated were substantially different than those of ATF's.
Why rule them accidental so quickly? I don't know. Maybe to keep it out of the spotlight as much as possible until they can collect the data. Maybe to keep unecessary speculation from occurring and creating panic.
The appropriate category though would be undetermined [which means it could be accidental or criminal - in other words - we don't know YET].
I know some good ATF fire investigators. So I'm not pounding them. Maybe it's political. I also noted that the Chemical Safety Board is investigating. I've worked with those guys and they are very professional and good at getting to the root cause.
A refinery does contain the ingredients for a catastrophic explosion - accidental or otherwise. Just have to wait for all the data to be collected and not jump to conclusions.
True.
Yep. French ship, too.
Mom said they all though it was a nuke.
I watched a show about it on the history channel. The blast threw cars nearly a mile. They werent compact cars either.
Click2Houston.com: Texas City, Texas - "14 DIE IN MASSIVE EXPLOSION AT TEXAS CITY REFINERY More Than 80 People Injured" (Updated March 23, 2005) (Read More...)
stepping back in time...Click2Houston.com: Texas City, Texas- "BP AMOCO PLANT EXPLOSION INVESTIGATION UNDER WAY No Injuries Reported; Cause Remains Unknown" (Updated March 31, 2004) (Read More...)
Their responsibility claim reminds me of the toy soldier they tried prop up as a kidnapped GI.
For the conspiracists here on FR, note that the supposed alien crash near Roswell, New Mexico in July 1947 was only four months after the big Texas City explosion.
Muleteam1
You have a source for this policy statement?
The essence of terrorism is to implant fear in their target populations. They are bluffing - move on.
Ping
Depending on the time of day, anywhere from 30 seconds to a couple of minutes but it will happen. Then if anyone tries to point out that there is no proof it isn't terrorism, they're savagely attacked.
Just political correctness. Like flt 800.
seems that if terrorists were going to do it, they'd hit the storage tank farms for the Shock and Awe the giant fires would make for days
*Michael Economides, a University of Houston chemical engineering professor familiar with the refining process, said that when a raffinate splitter is taken out of service for maintenance all flammable substances should be removed.
Liquid is drained, he said, and vapor is purged from the system with a blast of inert gas.
"These high-end hydrocarbons are not just flammable," he said, "they are eminently explosive ... This is big, intricate equipment with many nooks and crannies, and it is conceivable that there could have been a pocket of gas still somewhere in the unit."
Gas left in the system could be touched off by a welder's torch, or virtually any other source of ignition, with catastrophic results."*
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