Explosion at West Fertilizer Plant in West, Texas

[Jolie Rouge]

Horrible: Huge fertilizer plant explosion rocks West, Texas; As many as 60-70 feared dead ==> http://twitchy.com/2013/04/17/huge-fertilizer-plant-explosion-rocks-west-texas-photos/

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Horrific explosion tonight at a fertilizer plant in West, TX (19 mi. north of Waco). Latest reports are 60-70 dead, 75-100 homes and business destroyed, hundreds injured. Prayers for Texas tonight.

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Texas Plant Explosion Injures 200, Levels Homes, Businesses
By MICHAEL S. JAMES, LEEZEL TANGLAO and JOHN SANTUCCI
April 17, 2013

A fiery explosion at a Texas fertilizer plant in a small town 19 miles north of Waco has injured 200 people and destroyed dozens of homes and businesses, an emergency official said.

Of the 200 people injured near the West, Texas, plant, 40 were injured critically, Texas Department of Public Safety spokesman Gail Scarborough said.

It was unclear whether or not there were deaths.

Besides the injuries, 75 to 100 houses and business were completely destroyed in and around the plant, Scarborough said.

"It's total chaos," West City Councilwoman Cheryl Marak said, according to ABC News Radio. "There's ambulances and fire trucks and police cars from everywhere."

ABC - An explosion at fertilizer plant rocked a town in Texas

An explosion at fertilizer plant rocked a small Texas town near Waco Wednesday night - causing several injuries and destroying homes and vehicles, authorities said.
Marak told ABC News affiliate WFAA that the blast killed her pets and heavily damaged the local middle school.

"I was watching the flames and then it was just like a huge, huge explosion and two houses, I mean, it demolished both of those," Marak said, according to ABC News Radio. "I think everything around us is pretty much just gone."

Keith Williams, a local resident, said his house also was completely destroyed, according to ABC News Radio.

"All the ceilings are out," Williams said. "The windows are out. The brick's knocked off the house. My big garage out back is half blowed in."

He also saw "people with all their houses tore up across the street from me, on each side of me."

The West Fertilizer Plant exploded around 8 p.m. local time, and there were subsequent explosions around 10 p.m., WFAA reported. The cause of the explosions was unconfirmed, but a dispatcher was heard warning crews to move away from chemicals in unexploded tanks.

Firefighters initially went to the scene of a structure fire at the plant.

"They are still on scene, assessing the scene, treating the injuries, taking injured to the hospitals," Dani Moore, a spokeswoman for State Highway Patrol told ABC News Radio.

At least 10 buildings in the town of West were on fire, including a school located next to the plant, WFAA reported initially.

The town of West has a population of about 2,800.

http://abcnews.go.com/US/explosion-rocks-town-west-texas/story?id=18983638#.UW90rEolmat

[Jolie Rouge]

Seems I am not the first to have this thought :


* "The Oklahoma City bombing was a domestic terrorist bomb attack on April 19, 1995."

* "Attack type: Truck bomb (fertilizer)".

* "Motivated and angered by what he perceived as its mishandling of the Waco Siege (Waco, TX) (1993)".

* "The Waco siege began on Sunday, February 28, 1993, and ended violently 50 days later on April 19."

* We are 2 days behind April 19, and 2 days in front of the worst terrorist attack on US soil in years.

* This is the 20th anniversary of the Waco siege.

* I can't remember the last time a fertilizer plant accidentally exploded in the US.

* A fertilizer plant makes for an incredibly easy target to blow up.

[Jolie Rouge]

http://www.dailytexanonline.com/news/2013/04/17/kwtx-reporting-60-to-70-dead-at-west-texas-fertilizer-plant-explosion

To those questioning the high fatality numbers, we are just reporting what the West, TX EMS director reported, which we verified via phone...
http://www.dailytexanonline.com/news/2013/04/17/kwtx-reporting-60-to-70-dead-at-west-texas-fertilizer-plant-explosion

The mayor confirmed 6 firefighters and 1 cop. And that was 3 hours ago.

It flattened a 4 block radius around the plant.

[Jolie Rouge]

http://raycomgroup.images.worldnow.com/images/2427630_G.jpg


About 5-15 people have died as a result of a massive blast at a fertilizer plant in West, TX, said Sgt. Patrick Swanton, public information officer of the Waco Police Department. Swanton added three to five volunteer firefighters who went to the initial fire call are still missing. Two emergency personnel are confirmed dead. At least 160 people were injured in the blast. (Source: KTVT/CNN) http://bit.ly/13nqJuB




A volunteer firefighter in West, TX tweeted this photo of what used to be an apartment building. Officials are carefully searching through the rubble looking for victims after the explosion at a fertilizer plant devastated much of the small town's downtown area. (Source: KTVT/CNN) Click this link for more information - http://bit.ly/11fQvNq or click this link for more images - http://bit.ly/YwVupL

http://raycomgroup.images.worldnow.com/images/2427447_G.jpg

http://raycomgroup.images.worldnow.com/images/2427379_G.jpg

[Jolie Rouge]

https://sphotos-b.xx.fbcdn.net/hphotos-prn1/s480x480/17801_10151640620553854_894897315_n.jpg

CAUGHT ON CAMERA- Fertilizer Plant Explosion, West, Texas
The West, Texas fertilizer plant explosion on camera. PLEASE PRAY FOR THESE PEOPLE!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I9NSVJ6RG4I



https://sphotos-b.xx.fbcdn.net/hphotos-prn1/s480x480/555154_10151428856403823_2054807011_n.jpg

FERTILIZER PLANT EXPLOSION UPDATE: The entire town of West, TX is being evacuated due to fears that other fertilizer tanks might explode. The plant caught fire between 6:30 and 7 p.m. local time and blew up shortly thereafter. CNN reported three deaths from the explosion, but the number is expected to rise. http://bit.ly/11fQvNq

[Jolie Rouge]

A law enforcement officer is reportedly believed (unconfirmed) to be among other first responders killed in a massive fertilizer plant explosion in West, Texas. Blast has killed at least 15 people, injured over 160 and devastated the community, http://www.lawofficer.com/article/news/least-15-killed-over-160-injur

[Jolie Rouge]

https://sphotos-b.xx.fbcdn.net/hphotos-prn1/s480x480/547627_10151430676043823_1026646208_n.jpg

Law enforcement officials said 12 bodies have been recovered after the Texas fertilizer plant explosion on Wednesday, according to CNN. Sgt. Jason Reyes said the fire and blast injured 200 people and 50 homes have been destroyed. http://bit.ly/15rtMCu

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12 bodies recovered after TX plant explosion

WEST, TX (RNN) - Law enforcement officials said 12 bodies have been recovered after the Texas fertilizer plant explosion on Wednesday, according to CNN.

"It is with a heavy heart that I can confirm that 12 individuals have been recovered from the fertilizer plant explosion. The deceased have been taken to the Dallas Forensic Lab for proper identification," Sgt. Jason Reyes said.


He said the fire and blast injured 200 people and 50 homes have been destroyed.

"I just toured the site, both from the air and from the ground. And, frankly, the observation along the area around the site is just total devastation," Texas Attorney General Greg Abbott said.

A four block radius around the fertilizer plant is almost completely leveled.

Three fire trucks and one ambulance were also destroyed in the blast.

The bodies were found in and around the plant area. Officials will not confirm if the bodies recovered are fire fighters, emergency workers, plant workers or regular citizens.

About half the population in the town was evacuated, including a nursing home with more than 130 residents.

Search and rescue crews have been sifting through the still-smoldering remains for survivors and plan to continue throughout the day Friday.

"At this point they are in the continuation mode of search and rescue, which to me means that they are still going out and looking for survivors of the blast from Wednesday evening," Sgt. Patrick Swanton said.

Investigators said there is nothing so far to suggest anything other than an accident, but they can't rule anything out.

The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives is working to try to determine the cause of the blast.

"The explosion happened in a highly populated neighborhood, it is a volatile situation because it being a fertilizer company, it has the component ammonia nitrate which is a volatile product," McLennan County Chief Deputy Sheriff Matt Cawthon said.

Texas Attorney General Greg Abbott said Thursday "it's way premature" to determine whether any criminal charges could be sought in relation to the deadly explosion.

Gov. Rick Perry declared McLennan County a disaster area during a news conference.

A litany of state and some federal agencies are helping the town of West, according to Perry. Everyone from the Federal Emergency Management Agency to the Texas Department of Transportation are helping the town of 2,600.

According to the U.S. Geological Survey, the force of the explosion through the air was greater than a 2.1 earthquake.

The fire call came in at 7:29 p.m. CDT, Swanton said. The explosion was reported at 7:53 p.m.

"On my way in I saw homes that were burning, homes that had significant devastation, bricks were torn off," Swanton said. "It was almost tornadic in effect."

A YouTube video has surfaced of a man recording the explosion moments before it occurs. The video may be disturbing for some.

As the events unfolded, people in the area went online to report what was happening. One man posted a photo on Instagram of a giant black cloud that resulted from the explosion.

Kristen Crow, a reporter for the Tribune-Herald tweeted a photo of a triage on a football field. The field was later evacuated and the triage relocated.

The fire is under control, but continued to smolder Friday. Another factor in the disaster is the potential for toxic fumes.

The plant contains anhydrous ammonia used in the production of fertilizer, the fumes of which are dangerous to breathe.

The West Fertilizer Co. said it had 54,000 pounds of the chemical, The Dallas Morning News reported.

Because of the risk of poison, Texas Commission on Environmental Quality personnel said they are posted within a quarter-mile of the facility at the request of emergency personnel for safety reasons.

The Associated Press reports West Fertilizer was investigated by the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality in 2006 after receiving a complaint of a small ammonia smell.

The town of West has a population of around 3,000 people. It is approximately 19 miles north of Waco, the city where cult leader David Koresh led a 50-day standoff against the FBI that ended in death on April 19, 1993. Two years after Waco, on April 19, 1995, the Alfred P. Murrah Federal Building in downtown Oklahoma City was destroyed with a bomb that used fertilizer, killing 168.

And in what could be a tragic coincidence, Tuesday's disaster occurred the day after the anniversary of a similar fertilizer explosion in Texas City, TX, which took place on April 16, 1947. The official death toll of that explosion was 581, making it the deadliest industrial accident in American history.

http://www.wafb.com/story/22023335/12-bodies-recovered-after-tx-plant-explosion

[Jolie Rouge]

http://www.gannett-cdn.com/media/v2/brightcove/videos.usatoday.net/Brightcove2/29906170001/2013/04/29906170001_2310930977001_thumb-cd7803972860710d2f0f6a7067009044_r542_c540x304.jpg ?436a289f03cde4e0ed45f12ec0d66270cf41bc9a

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Texas blast death toll at 14; only 1 or 2 missing
Officials say 14 bodies have been recovered, many of whom were believed to be first responders.
Rick Jervis and Elizabeth Weise, USA TODAY 6:32 p.m. EDT April 19, 2013

WEST, Texas — Texas authorities said Friday that 14 bodies have been recovered from the massive fertilizer center explosion Wednesday night and that only one or two people remained missing.

After earlier announcing "with a heavy heart" that 12 bodies had been found near the obliterated facility, Texas Department of Public Safety Sgt. Jason Reyes said Friday evening that two more had been recovered. Later, officials reiterated that the death toll stood at 14, and clarified how many residents remained unaccounted for.

At a mid-day news briefing, U.S. Sen. John Cornyn told reporters that 60 residents were still missing.

"Right now the authorities are going to the hospitals and making sure they know where people are," the Texas Republican said. "There are a number of confirmed dead but there are others unaccounted for."

The blast left surrounding neighborhoods in ruins and injured about 200, Texas authorities said Friday. The city's population is about 2,800.

STORY: Nursing home worker: It was like a war zone

Officials said that at least 150 homes had been destroyed. All but 25 had been searched for bodies and officials expect to finish the task Friday morning. At least three rescue trucks and one fire truck were also destroyed, an indication of how many firefighters had rushed to the scene Wednesday to fight the fire that was burning in the fertilizer facility.

Andrea Jones, 40, lived in the 50-unit apartment building destroyed by the blast. She'd been standing outside, talking on her cellphone with her father and describing the fire to him, when the explosion erupted.

"It was the most horrible thing I've ever been through in my entire life," she said. "It felt like a war zone."

As she ran, a "guardian angel" in a black truck came along, threw open her door and shouted, "Get in!" and they sped off.

She and many other who lost homes are staying at the Czech Inn to await word on when they can return.

"I don't think I can go back into our apartment," she said. "I'm going to have to send my dad in. I'd just get too emotional. It was all too close."

Bill and Polly Killough had just sat down to watch TV when a powerful blast roared through their living room, blowing open the front door, bursting windows and collapsing the roof on top of them.

Figuring it must be a tornado, Polly, 64, and her husband clawed their way out of the debris. But looking around, all she could see was devastation. What she saw resembled a war zone.

"Now I know what soldiers go through," she said. "In an instant — just total destruction."



Federal and state investigators were awaiting clearance to enter the blast area to search for clues to the cause of both the initial fire and explosions.

"It's still too hot to get in there," Federal Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives spokeswoman Franceska Perot said. There was no indication of foul play.

With destruction so vast, it was well into Thursday before officials could comprehend and then describe the scope of the tragedy. It arrived on a dark week in America, one in which terror struck Boston, poison-laced letters rattled Washington, and Americans pause to recall the anniversaries of the Virginia Tech massacre and Oklahoma City bombing.

Texas Attorney General Greg Abbott, who toured the ravaged town, said railroad tracks to the west of the blast site were fused together from the unimaginable heat. He also saw a leveled playground and the "utterly destroyed" apartment building.

Emergency teams were combing through mountains of debris in a devastated four-block area in hopes of finding survivors.

Those killed include members of the West Volunteer Fire Department who were trying to put out the initial blaze, EMS workers and an off-duty Dallas firefighter, the mayor said.

"It's just a tragic, tragic incident," Muska said.

The Dallas Fire-Rescue department said Capt. Kenny Harris, who was at his home in West and joined local volunteer firefighters in battling the blaze at West Fertilizer Co., was killed. Harris, 52, was the married father of three grown sons.

The rest of the fatalities include residents who were in nearby homes when the explosion ripped through town, leveling homes and devastating neighborhoods, Muska said.

Texas Gov. Rick Perry, declaring the town a disaster area, said the earthquake-like explosion will likely affect every citizen of this tightly knit community located just off Interstate 35. He said President Obama called him from Air Force One en route to Boston on Thursday to offer federal assistance.

Emergency teams had responded to a fire call at the plant at 7:29 p.m. The explosion erupted 24 minutes later, as the firefighters, police and paramedics were battling the blaze and attempting to evacuate nearby residents. The West Rest Haven nursing home, which was heavily damaged, removed 133 residents, many hobbled or in wheelchairs.

Rescue workers were going still through the rubble Friday, searching home by home and room by room in hopes of finding more survivors.

"They want to make sure they don't miss anyone," Swanton said.

The injured were taken by ambulance, car and helicopter to trauma centers and hospitals in Waco, Temple and Dallas. The Red Cross set up an emergency shelter 15 miles away. But only 19 people stayed there Wednesday night, said Anita Foster, a Red Cross coordinator.

"Most people here stayed with friends or relatives," she said. "The whole town's pulled together."

[Jolie Rouge]

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POWERFUL AS OKLAHOMA CITY

West has been a farming hub for the region since its founding in 1892 and by the 1920s was dominated by Czech immigrants. Many of their descendants continue to work the farms and run the businesses that service them.

Czech can still be heard spoken in town, the West Chamber of Commerce points out on its website. And, in a bit of civic boosterism, it describes West as "the perfect blend of small-town hospitality and large city progressiveness."

Its destruction came from a blast so powerful it could be heard 45 miles away and its towering cloud of dark smoke was visible far across the rural landscape.

Texas Trooper D.L. Wilson said the damage was comparable to the destruction caused by the truck bomb that destroyed the Murrah Federal Building in Oklahoma City exactly 18 years ago Friday, killing 168 people and injuring 680. The blast destroyed or damaged 324 buildings in a 16-block radius

For Texans, it recalled the nation's worst industrial disaster at Texas City, near Galveston, when a series of explosions rocked the town's large waterfront petrochemical complex in 1947, killing at least 576 people and injuring 5,000. That blast, like this one, was an ammonium nitrate fertilizer explosion, in that case aboard a French freighter.

FERTILIZER DANGER ZONE

Sgt. Patrick Swanton, Waco Police spokesman, was one of the first on the scene. As he drove into West with a contingent of officers, he was met with a nightmarish landscape: charred homes with windows and doors blown out; cars and buildings still ablaze; medical helicopters circling overhead; some homes completely flattened.

"I've been policing for 32 years and seen some pretty rough stuff in that time," Swanton said. "I've never seen anything of this magnitude."

He said there were no indications the blast was anything other than an industrial accident.


On Feb. 26, West Fertilizer, which is owned by Adair Grain, reported to the Texas Department of State Health Services that it was storing up to 270 tons of ammonium nitrate, plus up to 100,000 pounds of liquid ammonia, the Los Angeles Times reported. Officials said they did not yet know how much of the volatile chemicals were being stored when the facility, which blends and distributes fertilizer to local farmers, caught fire and exploded.

Ammonium nitrate, a key fertilizer component, can be explosive and has been used in roadside bombs in Afghanistan. Oklahoma City bomber Timothy McVeigh, an Army veteran, packed a rented truck with it.

"It is a very volatile material," says David Small, spokesman for the Pentagon's task force to counter improvised explosive devices, called IEDs. In Afghanistan, 80% of the roadside bombs that target U.S. and NATO troops are created from homemade explosives, and most of them are from ammonium nitrate, Small said.

Pentagon explosives experts told the Los Angeles Times that an explosion involving 270 tons of ammonium nitrate would be larger than almost any conventional U.S. weapon.

Kathy Mathers, of the Fertilizer Institute, said she had never seen an explosion and fire of this magnitude in her 23 years in the industry. Fertilizer is made from nitrogen, phosphate and potassium, and she notes that the manufacturing of nitrogen carries great safety concerns.

NO SPRINKLERS OR BLAST WALLS

Feed and fertilizer distributors such as West Fertilizer are registered with the Texas Feed and Fertilizer Control Service, which also inspects them. West — a locally owned, family operation with about 10 employees — is one of 5,92 such establishments registered with the agency, says Tim Herrman, the Texas State Chemist who directs the service. It lists 14 investigators statewide on its website.

"It's a complex facility," he said of West Fertilizer. "Each of the different types of structures could fall under a different regulatory authority. It has fertilizer and grain. And they're also licensed as a feed establishment because of the grain tanks."

According to the service's 2012 annual report on fertilizer distributors, West Fertilizer had two chemical violations and one registration violation.

"We are in the firms multiple times in a year. We were in this firm just recently," says Herrman, who declined to say when it was last inspected.

The Associated Press cited records showing the U.S. Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration fined West Fertilizer $10,000 last summer for safety violations that included planning to transport anhydrous ammonia without a security plan. An inspector also found the plant's ammonia tanks weren't properly labeled.

The government accepted $5,250 after the company took what it described as corrective actions, the records show. It is not unusual for companies to negotiate lower fines with regulators.

In a risk-management plan filed with the Environmental Protection Agency in 2011, the company declared that it was not handling flammable materials and did not have sprinklers, water-deluge systems, blast walls, fire walls or other safety mechanisms in place at the plant.

In March 2006, the EPA fined West Chemical and Fertilizer, as the company was known then, fined $2,300 for not updating its risk-management plan, not keeping good records on employee training records and not having a formal written maintenance program.

STORY: Fertilizer facility in Texas was cited, fined in past

Attorney Terrence Welch of Richardson, Texas, an expert on land-use law in the state, says it's not surprising that homes and schools would be located near industrial facilities in a small town such as West, which grew up around railroad tracks.

"In a lot of small towns, you'll find houses not far from these types of facilities," he says. "Even though cities have zoning powers, the houses have been there sometimes long before cities adopted zoning ordinances."

Jerry Hagins, a spokesman for the Texas Department of Insurance, which oversees the State Fire Marshal's Office, says it's up to local fire authorities to conduct inspections of such facilities. His office is assisting federal ATF agents in investigating the cause of the fire and explosions.

'PLEASE GET OUT OF HERE'

The fireball was captured in cellphone videos seen widely a day after the blast.

In one video, posted on YouTube, a young girl, Khloey Hurtt, is recording the fire from about 300 yards away while sitting in a truck with her father, Derrick. The force of the blast knocks them both backward.

Khloey can be heard pleading with her father, "Please get out of here, please get out of here, Dad, please get out of here. I can't hear anything."

West Mayor Pro-Tem Stevie Vanek, a volunteer firefighter, was in a truck en route to fight the blaze when the explosion struck, rattling his vehicle. The volunteer firefighters pushed ahead, encountering vast and thorough destruction that looked "like a tornado" struck, Vanek said. "Horrendous. You can't imagine the force of that blast."

Despite the destruction, West will come back, Vanek said.

"We have a long row to hoe," he said. "But we will rebuild."

http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation/2013/04/19/west-texas-fertilizer-blast/2095817/

[Jolie Rouge]

West Fertilizer plant didn’t disclose ammonium nitrate stores
posted at 12:15 pm on April 20, 2013 by Ed Morrissey

The explosion in West was a tragic accident, not terrorism, but it may have been uniquely vulnerable to the latter without federal regulators knowing it. Reuters reports this morning that West Fertilizer stored more than a thousand times more than the reporting level of ammonium nitrate, a key ingredient in both fertilizer and certain types of bombs, without disclosing it as required to the Department of Homeland Security: http://www.cnbc.com/id/100658042


The fertilizer plant that exploded on Wednesday, obliterating part of a small Texas town and killing at least 14 people, had last year been storing 1,350 times the amount of ammonium nitrate that would normally trigger safety oversight by the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS).

Yet a person familiar with DHS operations said the company that owns the plant, West Fertilizer, did not tell the agency about the potentially explosive fertilizer as it is required to do, leaving one of the principal regulators of ammonium nitrate – which can also be used in bomb making – unaware of any danger there.

Fertilizer plants and depots must report to the DHS when they hold 400 lb (180 kg) or more of the substance. Filings this year with the Texas Department of State Health Services, which weren’t shared with DHS, show the plant had 270 tons of it on hand last year. …

Firms are responsible for self reporting the volumes of ammonium nitrate and other volatile chemicals they hold to the DHS, which then helps measure plant risks and devise security and safety plans based on them.

Since the agency never received any so-called top-screen report from West Fertilizer, the facility was not regulated or monitored by the DHS under its CFAT standards, largely designed to prevent sabotage of sites and to keep chemicals from falling into criminal hands.

The DHS focuses “specifically on enhancing security to reduce the risk of terrorism at certain high-risk chemical facilities,” said agency spokesman Peter Boogaard. “The West Fertilizer Co. facility in West, Texas is not currently regulated under the CFATS program.”

Bear in mind that this may not have anything to do with the fire and explosion, at least not directly. The reporting requirements are in place so that DHS can ensure that proper security exists to keep terrorists from getting their hands on enough ammonium nitrate to conduct an Oklahoma City-size attack. It’s not necessarily a safety regimen in the day-to-day operational sense.

Still, if West Fertilizer wasn’t in compliance with those regulations, it may indicate that they cut corners elsewhere, too. And you can bet that Texas and the federal government will be wondering the same thing in the aftermath of the devastation that took place in West this week.

http://hotair.com/greenroom/archives/2013/04/20/reuters-west-fertilizer-plant-didnt-disclose-ammonium-nitrate-stores/

[Eddie]

This occurred almost right on the heals of this story. Obama Closing Air Defense System on U.S./Mexico Border: Texas & America Vulnerable to Attack from Low Altitude Missiles and Aircraft. Many people have wanted me to look at this information, so as a real leader I am. I find the questions compelling. In the above video, there is a flame in the left side of the video frame and the sound of a jet coming in prior to the explosion. When you slow it down, the projectile’s path is more evident. Also note that the projectile explodes prior to impact so that there is no crater and the damage is spread out over the surface. It is probable that David Bellow of the Texas GOP had a warranted fear for the safety of Texas. Obama is a threat to the security of the United States. Obama is the Trojan Horse.

http://nevadagovernor2014.com/missile-used-in-texas-fertilizer-plant-explosion-nevada-governor-2014-david-lory-vanderbeek/

West, TX Explosion Police Scanner Audio
http://12160.info/page/west-listen--explosion-police-scanner-audio

[Jolie Rouge]

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[Jolie Rouge]

Sacramento Cartoon Mocks Texas Explosion Victims
04/29/13

This cartoon was published in the Sacramento Bee: http://www.sacbee.com/2013/04/24/5369617/business-in-texas.html

http://www.reagancoalition.com/images/other/sacramentotx.jpg


Governor Rick Perry sent the Sacramento Bee a response: http://www.sacbee.com/2013/04/26/5375185/gov-perry-weighs-in-on-texas-explosion.html


Re “Business is booming in Texas” (Editorial cartoon, April 25): It was with extreme disgust and disappointment I viewed your recent cartoon. While I will always welcome healthy policy debate, I won’t stand for someone mocking the tragic deaths of my fellow Texans and our fellow Americans.

Additionally, publishing this on the very day our state and nation paused to honor and mourn those who died only compounds the pain and suffering of the many Texans who lost family and friends in this disaster. The Bee owes the community of West, Texas an immediate apology for your detestable attempt at satire.

– Gov. Rick Perry, Austin, Tex.

http://www.reagancoalition.com/articles/2013/20130429005-sacramento-tx.html#WTaDzWkatEfTQ6bF.99

comments

As a resident of the Sacramento area, I, too, am disappointed and disgusted, and would call this 'cartoon' dispicable! However, I'm not surprised given the liberal mindset here. Keep in mind we have the amazingly progressive-thinking Senators Feinstein and Boxer with their consistently business friendly proposed legislation, not to mention those on the State level that mirror those two esteemed Senators (excuse me while I lose my lunch...even I can't stay straight-faced with that last sentence). All these liberal leaning politicians mindlessly follow OWEblamer's lead with the finger-pointing to explain why businesses are leaving California faster than the speed sound, while Texas, a RED state, seems to be welcoming those leaving businesses with open arms (arms would include handguns, rifles, shotguns...)!

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What did you expect out of a liberal paper in a most liberal state?

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Now if a conservative would have said something like that about a illegal immigrant or a Muslim then every media outlet in the United States would be covering it an have complete outrage about it! Pickets protests jobs lost you name it!

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Wow.... So I guess we can all have a good laugh the next time wild fires, mudslides, or earthquakes happen out in California?
Not, my mother brought me up better than that.

[pepperpot]

That was really poor taste. eek.

[Jolie Rouge]

http://newsbcpcol.stb.s-msn.com/amnews/i/fe/a8effbe488140e8f9648bade4623_h366_w650_m6_lfalse.j pg

Texas fertilizer plant was a target for theft, tampering: police records
9 hr ago |By Selam Gebrekidan and Joshua Schneyer of Reuters


NEW YORK — The Texas fertilizer plant that exploded two weeks ago, killing 14 people and injuring about 200, was a repeat target of theft by intruders who tampered with tanks and caused the release of toxic chemicals, police records reviewed by Reuters show.

Police responded to at least 11 reports of burglaries and five separate ammonia leaks at West Fertilizer Co over the past 12 years, according to 911 dispatch logs and criminal offense reports Reuters obtained from the McLennan County Sheriff's office in Waco, Texas through an Open Records Request.

Some of the leaks, including one reported in October 2012, were linked to theft or interference with tank valves.

According to one 2002 crime report, a plant manager told police that intruders were stealing four to five gallons of anhydrous ammonia every three days. The liquid gas can be used to cook methamphetamine, the addictive and illicit stimulant.

In rural areas across the United States, the thriving meth trade has turned storage facilities like West Fertilizer Co and even unattended tanks in farm fields into frequent targets of theft, according to several government and fertilizer industry reports issued over the past 13 years.

The cause of the April 17 blast at the plant in the town of West is still being probed, and investigators have offered no evidence that security breaches contributed to the deadly incident. There also is no indication that the explosion had anything to do with the theft of materials for drug making. Anhydrous ammonia has been ruled out as a cause because the four storage tanks remained intact after the blast, said Rachel Moreno, a spokeswoman for the Texas Fire Marshal's Office.

MANY LEADS

Investigators are pursuing about 100 leads, including a call to an arson hotline and a tip that there had been a fire on the property earlier on the day of the explosion, according to Moreno. Authorities have not said whether either tip was credible. About 80 investigators from various state and federal agencies are contributing to the probe. They hope to determine by May 10 what caused the explosion, Texas Fire Marshal Chris Connealy said at a state legislative hearing on Wednesday.

A spokesman for the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS), one of several state and federal agencies that monitor security at chemical plants, declined to answer questions about the breaches of security at West Fertilizer Co. State investigators also declined to comment.

Thefts of anhydrous ammonia are common in McLennan County, where burglars siphon fertilizer from trailer tanks into five-gallon propane containers, said McLennan County Chief Deputy Sheriff Matt Cawthon, who took up the position in January.

After reviewing crime reports from the past 12 years and speaking to deputies who responded to some of the break-ins, Cawthon said security was clearly lax at the plant.

The perimeter was not fenced, and the facility had no burglar alarms or security guards, he said. "It was a hometown-like situation. Everybody trusts everybody."

Chemical safety experts said the recurrent security breaches at West Fertilizer are troubling because they suggest vulnerability to theft, leaks, fires or explosions. Apart from anhydrous ammonia, the company stored tons of ammonium nitrate, a fertilizer that can be used in bomb-making. No thefts of that substance were reported to police.

"Regardless of what triggered this specific event, the fact that there were lots of burglaries and that they were after ammonia clearly shows this plant was vulnerable to unwanted intruders or even a terrorist attack," said Sam Mannan, a chemical process safety expert at Texas A&M University, who has advised Dow Chemical and others on chemical security.

NEW LAW

Owners of West Fertilizer, responding through a representative, declined to answer questions about specific instances of theft or the level of security at the plant. The company has encouraged its employees to share "all they know" with investigators, said Daniel Keeney, a spokesman for the company.

The current owners of West Fertilizer are Donald Adair, 83, and Wanda Adair, 78, who bought it in 2004. Calls to a number listed for previous owner Emil Plasek were not returned.

In a 2006 permit application with the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality (TCEQ), the company reported it would protect ammonia tanks against theft or tampering and conduct daily equipment inspections. A TCEQ spokesman would not comment about security measures. He said the agency's responsibility is to regulate emissions from the plant, not to oversee security.

Documents from the Texas Department of State Health Services show the West plant was storing 540,000 pounds of ammonium nitrate and 54,000 pounds of anhydrous ammonia in 2012. Ammonium nitrate was among the ingredients in the bomb used by Timothy McVeigh to blow up the Oklahoma City federal building in 1995, killing 168 people.

After that bombing, Congress passed a law requiring facilities that store large amounts of the chemical to report to the DHS and work with the agency to ensure proper security measures are in place to keep it out of criminal hands and protect against such attacks.

West Fertilizer did not report to DHS, despite storing hundreds of times more ammonium nitrate than the amount that would require it do so. Depending on the grade of the chemical, companies are required to report if they store at least 400 pounds or 2,000 pounds of ammonium nitrate.

A 2005 U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) study identified hundreds of cases in 16 states where anhydrous ammonia was stolen for use in meth production. Some illegal labs mix anhydrous ammonia with ephedrine or pseudoephedrine and sodium or lithium to make methamphetamine, the U.S. Department of Justice reported in 2001.

In dozens of instances, the CDC said, the thefts by meth makers siphoning ammonia from tanks caused injuries or forced evacuations because gas was released into the environment. However, cases of ammonia theft have become less frequent since 2006, when new laws restricted the sale of pseudoephedrine, which is found in some common cold drug remedies, according to The Fertilizer Institute, an industry association.

Police records show West Fertilizer began complaining of repeated thefts from the facility in June 2001, when burglars stole 150 pounds of anhydrous ammonia from storage tanks three nights in a row. Nearly a year later, a plant manager told police that thieves were siphoning four-to-five gallons of the liquefied fertilizer every three days.

Randy Plemons, who was chief deputy sheriff during the years when the thefts occurred, declined to discuss specifics of his agency's response to the repeated break-ins.

"Whenever we were notified of the burglaries and thefts we responded to those," he said. "I can't speak to every offense."

Company owners downplayed security risks in documents submitted to the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality in 2006, saying thefts had dropped to zero over the preceding 20 months as meth makers now had found a substitute for anhydrous ammonia available at garden nurseries or major retailers.

VERY STRONG ODOR

Yet burglars and trespassers continued to target the facility. Following a series of break-ins in late 2008 and early 2009, including one where a trespasser visited pornographic websites on a secretary's computer, police told plant manager Ted Uptmore - who has worked at the company for decades — to install a surveillance system. Later documents show the company complied. Uptmore did not respond to phone calls seeking comment for this story.

The last record of tampering was in October 2012, when a 911 caller reported an odor "so strong it can burn your eyes." The firm dispatched Cody Dragoo, an employee often sent after hours to shut leaking valves and look into break-ins. That night, he shut off the valve but reported it had been tampered with.

Two weeks ago, Dragoo, 50, was among those killed in the blast while responding to the fire.

http://news.msn.com/crime-justice/texas-fertilizer-plant-was-a-target-for-theft-tampering-police-records

[Jolie Rouge]

Ammonium nitrate triggered blast at Texas plant
The explosion at a fertilizer plant in West, Texas, was caused by ammonium nitrate, state fire officials say. What they don't know is why it happened.
4 hr ago |By Jim Forsyth of Reuters

AUSTIN, Texas — Investigators have confirmed that ammonium nitrate was the trigger for the explosion at a West, Texas, fertilizer plant last month that left 14 people dead and some 200 injured, according to the Texas state fire marshal's office.

The actual cause of the fire and subsequent blast at the West Fertilizer facility is still being determined, investigators said.

The fire marshal's office has been leading the investigation of the April 17 blast, along with the federal Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives agency (ATF).

The blast caused an estimated $100 million in damages to homes, businesses and schools near the fertilizer plant, and killed several firefighters and other first responders who rushed to the scene of a fire at the fertilizer plant.

Ammonium nitrate is a dry fertilizer mixed with other fertilizers such as phosphate and applied to crops to promote growth. It can be combustible under certain conditions, and was used as an ingredient in the Oklahoma City bombing in 1995 that left 168 people dead.

Anhydrous ammonia, another fertilizer component, was also stored on site at the West Fertilizer facility and there was some early speculation that it may have been the source of the explosion.

More than 70 investigators have developed over 200 leads, from which over 400 interviews have been conducted. Thus far, investigators do know the origin of the fire was in the fertilizer and seed building. The investigators continue to work on pinpointing an exact location of the fire's origin within the building that is over 12,000 square feet (1,100 square meters).

Investigators said they have eliminated the following causes for the initial fire: weather, natural causes, anhydrous ammonium, the railcar containing ammonium nitrate, and a fire within the ammonium nitrate bin.

Additionally, they said water used during fire fighting activities did not contribute to the cause of the explosion as some had speculated.

Even though the investigation into the cause has not been determined, at least seven lawsuits have so far been filed against Adair Grain Inc, which owned the fertilizer facility.

Plaintiffs claim negligence by the plant employees and are seeking millions of dollars in claims. Four insurance companies are among those suing Adair Grain seeking to recover claims they are paying to individuals and businesses hurt in the explosion.

http://news.msn.com/us/cause-of-plant-explosion-found-texas-fire-officials-say?ocid=ansnews11

[Jolie Rouge]

Paramedic who responded to Texas blast arrested
May 10, 2013 12:16 PM CDT

WACO, Texas (AP) - A Texas paramedic who helped evacuate people on the night of the deadly fertilizer plant explosion in West has been arrested and charged with possessing a destructive device.

It's not clear whether the charges are related to the fire or the explosion at the West Fertilizer Co. last month that killed 14 people.

McLennan County Jail booking clerk Brandy Gann says paramedic Bryce Reed arrived at the jail at about 2:40 a.m. Friday and was released to federal agents before 8 a.m.

A fire erupted at the plant the night of April 17 and a massive explosion rocked the town of West about 20 minutes later.

Investigators have largely treated the incident as an industrial accident. But Texas law enforcement officials also launched a criminal investigation Friday

http://www.wafb.com/story/22218199/paramedic-who-responded-to-texas-blast-arrested?utm_source=buffer&utm_medium=twitter&utm_campaign=Buffer&utm_content=bufferbb358

[Jolie Rouge]

FEMA denies aid to Texas for blast
By RAMIT PLUSHNICK-MASTI Associated Press Posted: Jun 12, 2013 11:34 AM

https://fbcdn-sphotos-f-a.akamaihd.net/hphotos-ak-ash4/s403x403/1005689_10151513605638823_2124018797_n.jpg

HOUSTON (AP) - The Federal Emergency Management Agency is refusing to provide additional money to help rebuild the small Texas town where a deadly fertilizer plant explosion leveled numerous homes and a school, and killed 15 people.

According to a letter obtained by The Associated Press, FEMA said it reviewed the state's appeal to help but decided that the explosion "is not of the severity and magnitude that warrants a major disaster declaration."

FEMA already has provided millions of dollars in aid to the town of West and its residents, but the decision prevents them from getting some of the widespread assistance typically available to victims of tornadoes, hurricanes and other natural disasters.

The decision likely means less money to pay for public repairs to roads, sewer lines, pipes and a school that was destroyed.

The blast killed 10 first responders and brought national attention to the agricultural community. President Barack Obama traveled to the area to attend a memorial service for the first responders and others who died trying to help.

As of Wednesday, FEMA said the agency and the U.S. Small Business Administration had approved more than $7 million in aid and low-interest loans to West residents impacted by the blast. FEMA also is paying 75% of the costs of debris removal and will reimburse the state and the municipality for the initial emergency response.

FEMA denied the "major disaster declaration" both for public assistance - which would give money to the city to help rebuild - and for further individual aid, which would provide for crisis counseling and other services.

It's not unusual for FEMA to turn down that level of assistance for emergencies not stemming from natural disasters. In 2010, for example, officials denied a request for millions in aid after a gas pipeline explosion that consumed a Northern California neighborhood.

Some funds would be available in West through insurance pay outs and because it believes the state or the municipality has the resources to cover the costs, among other things, agency spokesman Dan Watson said in a statement.

Individuals can still receive rental assistance and some funds for rebuilding, and the state can appeal for more public assistance but some programs for individuals will not be made available, he said.

But West Mayor Tommy Muska said the rural community of 2,800 people cannot cover the costs of the repairs, and doesn't believe that the state will provide enough money on its own. He estimated the cost of those repairs at about $57 million, including $40 million to rebuild schools that were destroyed or damaged when the West Fertilizer Co. blew up in April. "We don't have the money to go out and borrow the money. We don't have the means to pay that note back," Muska said. "There's got to be some public assistance."

The letter, dated June 10, is addressed to Texas Gov. Rick Perry and signed by FEMA Administrator Craig Fugate.

Perry noted in a statement that Obama attended a memorial service in April for the victims of the West blast and "stood in front of a grieving community and told them they would not be forgotten."

"He said his administration would stand with them, ready to help," Perry said. "We anticipate the president will hold true to his word and help us work with FEMA to ensure much-needed assistance reaches the community of West."

The West Fertilizer Co. blew up after the plant caught fire. The cause of the fire remains unclear - and a criminal investigation is still open - but investigators say the heat of the fire destabilized tons of a potentially explosive fertilizer stored at the plant, leading to the massive blast that leveled chunks of the town. The incident highlighted how loosely regulated some chemicals are, including the ammonium nitrate that blew up, and has some critics saying the government needs to tighten its oversight of such plants.

The blast emitted a wave of energy so strong it registered as a small earthquake, knocked down people blocks away, blew out windows, left a massive 93-foot crater and curved walls of homes and buildings.

Marty Crawford, superintendent of West schools, said officials had requested the FEMA aid to help pay for structural damage. An intermediate school near the plant was destroyed, as were parts of the high school and middle school. The district expects to get tens of millions of dollars in insurance money to help pay for the repairs, but needs the FEMA funds to get the job done, he said.

Crawford believes the state could continue to push FEMA to reverse its decision, though it appears the chance of getting federal assistance is low. "Now we're not out of appeals, but in baseball terms, we're probably facing a two-strike count and fouling a bunch of pitches off," Crawford said in a phone interview. "As long as you've got another strike to fight with, we can hold onto hope."

Associated Press writer Nomaan Merchant contributed to this report from Dallas.

http://www.wafb.com/story/22571753/apnewsbreak-fema-denies-aid-to-texas-for-blast

[pepperpot]

Doesn't the company who caused the blast have insurance? Isn't that what insurance is for? Granted, the magnitude of the damage more than likely far exceeded the dollar amount of coverage.

I'm not so sure that this denial is wrong.

I do think a low interest loan for those who are not compensated should be given though.

My understanding is that FEMA was designed more for natural disasters (non-negligible) where insurance is non-existent.