60,000 pounds of ammonium nitrate missing from a train

[LuvOrlando]

https://news.yahoo.com/30-ton-shipment-explosive-chemicals-122047925.html
What is going on with chemicals and trains these days?

Hope the people in East Palestine are doing ok now, everything got real quiet.

https://www.theguardian.com/us-news...chemical-accidents-one-every-two-days-average

 

[RamblingMad]

Sounds like a system issue. It’s not practical for typical thieves to steal that much

 

[DonMacGregor]

Sounds like a system issue. It’s not practical for typical thieves to steal that much

“The railcar was sealed when it left the Cheyenne facility, and the seals were still intact when it arrived in Saltdale. The initial assessment is that a leak through the bottom gate on the railcar may have developed in transit,” the spokesperson told KQED.

 

[DLgal]

Apparently, things leak out of open gates on trains all the time. Considering this was fertilizer, it would be hard to find because it would get absorbed by the ground it fell on, wouldn't it?

 

[DonMacGregor]

Apparently, things leak out of open gates on trains all the time. Considering this was fertilizer, it would be hard to find because it would get absorbed by the ground it fell on, wouldn't it?

Correct:

“The fertilizer is designed for ground application and quick soil absorption,” Ms. South said. “If the loss resulted from a rail car leak over the course of transportation from origin to destination, the release should pose no risk to public health or the environment.”

 

[lifesavacation]

It doesn't surprise me. Things fall off rail cars all the time. Sounds like it may have dispersed out from the bottom.

This is why I really oppose coal transport via rail. It pollutes both our air and water along the tracks. Wish more people cared about it.

 

[WAstateDVCDaddy]

In a few weeks there should be some spectacular plant growth near those tracks!

 

[prairie_girl]

Didn’t this happen on an episode of Breaking Bad? lol

 

[cvjw]

In a few weeks there should be some spectacular plant growth near those tracks!

Someone needs to sprinkle wildflower seeds along the tracks to take advantage of all that fertilizer!

 

[Mrs. Ciz]

Didn’t this happen on an episode of Breaking Bad? lol

I said the exact same thing to myself when I read this thread!

 

[jalapeno_pretzel]

In a few weeks there should be some spectacular plant growth near those tracks!

Or if there's a heavy rain, it can wash off into a stream/river/lake in a heavy concentration and cause an algae bloom that will choke out native aquatic populations.

 

[LuvOrlando]

Was considering it sounds like Oceans 11, what if the stuff never made it onto the train in the first place? That much has got to be valuable, I wonder how much it is worth?

 

[DCLMP]

Isn't it also used in explosives?

 

[Dan Murphy]

Isn't it also used in explosives?

Yes. Think Oklahoma City bombing.

 

[DCLMP]

Yes. Think Oklahoma City bombing.

That is why it is relevant. Nothing may come of it, but certainly not something to joke about.

 

[Dan Murphy]

That is why it is relevant. Nothing may come of it, but certainly not something to joke about.

Very true, for sure, DC. When I saw the thread title this afternoon, my first thought, Oklahoma City.

 

[LuvOrlando]

Isn't it also used in explosives?

It was the stuff that caused that giant explosion in Beirut, Lebanon that leveled the port and destroyed the city in 2021.

 

[LuvOrlando]

Just looked it up and the disaster in Beirut, Lebanon was caused by 2.75 kiloton, or 2750 tons.
The amount that disappeared in the incident this week is more than 10 times that much.
I'd like more than some David Copperfield Statue of Liberty TV Special level explanation.

This is what this stuff did in Beirut:
https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fpubh.2021.657996/full

 

[DonMacGregor]

Just looked it up and the disaster in Beirut, Lebanon was caused by 2.75 kiloton, or 2750 tons.
The amount that disappeared in the incident this week is more than 10 times that much.
I'd like more than some David Copperfield Statue of Liberty TV Special level explanation.

This is what this stuff did in Beirut:
https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fpubh.2021.657996/full

60,000 pounds is 30 tons. The blast in Beirut was caused by 2,750 tons.

 

[dez1978]

Didn’t this happen on an episode of Breaking Bad? lol

NGL, meth was my 1st thought. But I live in a very methy state, so there's that.