4 tons of fertilizer stolen in Frederick

WTOP ^ | 3/2/09 | staff

[Nachum]

FREDERICK, Md. (AP) - Frederick police say four tons of fertilizer have been stolen from a farm supply store.

The fertilizer disappeared from the Southern States store in the 500 block of East South Street in Frederick some time Saturday night or early Sunday.

A store representative told police that 2,000 pounds of urea and 6,000 pounds of other fertilizer are missing. The fertilizer was in white 50-pound bags with a company logo.

Lt. Clark Pennington says they don't know what the motive behind the theft is, but they have notified the Maryland Coordination Analysis Center, which alerts all federal agencies of the theft.

(Copyright 2009 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.)

[Eric in the Ozarks]

I heard that. Cast blasting is strictly for out in the country and where you've done your pre-blast surveys. We never used sticks of any kind, just ANFO in 50 pound bags. We did use a product called Tovex in 6 inch X 2 inch sausages to shoot the coal. A cap would ignite the Tovex but a big hockey puck was used to kick off the ANFO and sometimes, when we were close to a structure, we would double deck the shot with a foot of cuttings between the columns of ANFO. This would present problems because we were limited in the number of wires we could hook to the blasting machine.

[Cindy]

Thank you for the ping 444Flyer.

[antivenom]

As I recall large purchases of fertilizer is reported to Homeland Security???

SO why buy it if it can be stolen and the only report being filed is the name of the “former owner” not the current owner....

[antivenom]

It is also interesting that this was stolen just before a HUGE snowstorm...so.....

IF there was any evidence...tire tracks let’s say...they will be obliterated with “snow plows, ice, salt and other inconveniences from the weather”....

Less people out and driving around to “see” anything...

[PalmettoMason]

The Tree of Liberty is not fertilized with anything other than blood of Patriots.

Did my point really go that far over your head?

[Drew68]

I am one of those people who believe that the Oklahoma bombing had some ROP types involved.

You're not alone. In the haste of execution, McVeigh took many secrets to the grave.

[444Flyer]

You are welcome Cindy.:)

[DBrow]

“If you’re making a bomb the urea is all thats necessary (aside from some fuel oil) “

It's more complicated than that. Urea mixed with fuel oil won't explode. You must get almost an equal weight of other chemicals and do a lot of processing first, then use a detonator-booster system.

And even ammonium nitrate-fuel oil takes a considerable amount of booster explosive to go boom. Insensitive explosives are safer and that's why they are used in industry- it's actually very hard to make them “go”.

[dusttoyou]

Wow I hope not. I think we were both trying to make a patriotic point. Mine a little less subtle.

[HuntsvilleTxVeteran]

True and the speed of the explosion is much slower than
dynamite and it has to be enclosed or dampened much more
than dynamite to get close to fifty percent of the power
of dynamite by weight.

[HollyB]

News video with photo of suspect:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8YpsPxAoyYs

[Tolerance Sucks Rocks]

Just look for a large, smoking crater, folks, and you’ll find out where all that fertilizer went...

Maryland “Freak State” PING!

[trooprally]

Ping!!! Remember us talking about Hagerstown?
[Mrs T]