PETN containers punctured at N.C. port
Okay, how does this just happen?
The Morehead City port has been shut down and authorities are say there’s a voluntary evacuation of downtown Morehead City.
Morehead City police say nine containers containing highly explosive material were punctured at 4:44 a.m. Tuesday. Officials say the material is PETN.
Experts say PETN is used in detonators, grenades and projectiles and is highly explosive. According to online information, it is usually shipped as a mixture with water.
PETN was the explosive used in the Christmas Day terror plot when a man is accused of trying to blow up a Detroit-bound plane.
Source: WITN.
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Maybe this is another Slovakian training exercise gone awry?
I can see maybe one or two containers punctured, but NINE? This seems like someone wanted these containers to get that stuff out.
L
You need an Federal ID card known as a TWIC to get into a port. The people with access should be known. The guy named Mo, or the Catholic Nun moonlighting as a stevedore are my top two choices for further investigation.
Morehead City isn’t too far from Camp Lejeune, although I can’t imagine that was the destination of the PETN. Maybe someone was trying to get their hands on some explosives and was surprised to find a liquid instead of a powder.
Whatever the explanation, we already know — no investigation needed — that it has nothing to do with terrorism. See the FBI, etc. announcements that are currently being typed up. So everybody, please, just go back to the golf course.
In a related story, Massachusetts Congressman Barney Frank has offered to search the underwear of all suspicious males in the area.
Come on. You all were thinking it.
aloha guy, don’t forget the 76 year old swedish red cross retiree in a wheelchair.
Because the system worked? Just a s.w.a.g. on my part.
Obama will need to have another emergency meeting of the liberal minds to…
1. Blame Bush
2. State unequivocally, “one individual acted alone”
3. Shred revived Gorelick Memos
4. Use as excuse to increase Homeland Security bloated bureaucracy
I’m anxious to see the official disposition of the issue, but my money’s on the night shift forklift operator who had a fight with his wife, and went to work with half a load on. I hope I’m right.
Who wants to bet that the surveillance camera was operated by the TSA?
Besides, if it was working all you will see is 2 people with hoodies poking holes in containers looking for cocaine.
BTW hoodies have been banned in some public schools.
PETA for PETN.
Oh yeah, I forgot them. They’re a dangerous lot.
How could I ever forget! Gawd she was hawt!
Did the FBI come on, within minutes, stating this is not an act of terrorism?
Let’s not jump to conclusions!
This is very freaky, bizarre in fact. PETN is an old formula HE. Who and why would anyone but the military “order” a load of this stuff – in liquid form? And I’m sure military orders for any explosive material would arrive by rail anyway.
***
PETN–and other military explosives like TNT–are pretty safe by themselves. They are designed to be loaded in shells and fired out of cannons with 10,000 G’s of acceleration without detonating in the barrel–only at the target do they explode.
***
Detonating explosives usually requires a small amount of a high shock high heat initiator charge–and these items are usually kept separate from or isolated from the large amount of PETN or TNT. For example–a blasting cap is needed to detonation of dynamite–fire alone won’t do it–shock is needed also.
***
Long ago I saw a labor charge number on a test called FIRE STACK. I asked one of our missile experts what kind of sophisticated test would be done. His answer was simple, “We are going to stack some complete hot missiles up on a frame and we will build a fire under them. They can burn–but should not explode (detonate). This is a required safety check on their design.”
***
However, with Al Queda explosives “engineering”–look at it cross-eyed and it may blow up instantly. Safety and QC are not high on their priority list–and the human “delivery systems” are cheap and expendable!
***
John Bibb
***
I must admit I have never met a Catholic Nun moonlighting as a stevedore or 76 year old Swedish red cross retiree in a wheelchair who wasn’t dirty. You guys could work for Homeland Security.
This stuff is only used in the military so how was it not being transported by the one of the military contractors?
The puncturer acted stupidly.
Ragman #10, you win!
Inquiring minds want to know:
Do fork lifts routinely work in the dark at 4:44 a.m.? How often are containers punctured by fork lifts? Who was the fork lift operator? Where did this shipment come from and where was it going?
That the container was punctured by a fork lift does not mean it was accidental and not with some nefarious motive.
Making it look like it might have been accidental raises my suspicion to a higher degree!
Dang!
You beat me to it!
Kudos to you!
Not 4:43.
Not 4:45.
4:44 – it’s a good thing that forklift operator was looking at his watch while he was
movingpuncturing those containers.Actually it is normal for ports to be running 24/7/365. and poking a hole in a container with a forklift is an everyday occurrence.
PETN actually does have uses outside of military weapons. It is used as a heart medicine, just as nitroglycerin is, and for the same reasons. But my guess is that it was headed to LeJeune.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pentaerythritol_tetranitrate
I’d pay money to see a beer/stevedore summit.
If I were running a forklift around pallets full of explosives I think I would be watching where I was going and not the clock! But that is just me…
WOW…Thanks for the link, Rorschach! I didn’t realize that there was another @$$hole bomber (literally – see the “misuse” section in the wikipedia link – 8/28/09) that used the same MO as the panty-bomber over Detriot on 12/25/09.
At least THAT guy succeeded in killing someone (fortunately, it was just himself). Wonder if he got any virgins??? Did he just “commit suicide” or is he a martyr in the eyes of Allah?!?
this story reeks! i’ve often wondered how hard it would be to smuggled in some c-4 with the latest shipment of afghanny heroin.
Come on people. An accident happened while unloading containers. It’s all cleaned up now and the bridge to Beaufort is now open.
There are plenty of places in NC that it could be going to, Lejeune, Cherry Point, Seymour, Bragg and that port is where the rail starts that vists all these bases
What kind of ‘puncture’? Were all nine of the containers on the same pallet? The little bit of information provided is way to vague to go hareing off about.
There are way too many possibilities here. A forklift could have punctured the containers. They could have been punctured by colliding with something(s). If it was in transit, that does happen occasionally. PETN’s pretty stable especially if in its original packaging and as long as there’s no blasting cap or other detonator. Not as stable as C4 perhaps but far more stable than dynamite, AMFO or even TNT.
So it could be an industrial accident of some sort. One that the folks seem to be taking prudent action to prevent it from becoming a catastrophic accident it seems. What ever it is, we don’t know enough right now to comment.
Okay, how does this just happen?
Despite the poorly written and edited article, it says how the puncture happened.
“Morehead City Mayor Jerry Jones says a forklift operator accidentally punctured at least one container filled with PETN, forcing the port to shut down.”
A different, possibly better question would be, why aren’t the containers better designed to avoid the possibility of puncture?
If the forklift guy was named “Joe” my terrorist level is yellow.
If his name is “Mohammmed” or “I hate infidels” my terrorist level is burnt sienna, depending on whatever the scale is today, or how artistic I am feeling.
What, no puce or mauve?
Stupid unionized untrained monkeys, probably driving those effed up Nissan forklifts with the effed up fork controls (all four functions are on one stick and they aren’t laid out in any kind of logical order.)
I’ve driven a forklift before….
I know, I know.
But how does one puncture nine?
If they get virgin anything I am betting on goats or camels. I don’t think enough women have died throughout history to meet the demand, but logic or reason don’t belong in the same sentence as religon.
On January 12th, 2010 at 6:34 pm, Lindsay said:
If the forklift guy was named “Joe” my terrorist level is yellow.
If his name is “Mohammmed” or “I hate infidels” my terrorist level is burnt sienna, depending on whatever the scale is today, or how artistic I am feeling
THIS IS SO FUNNY! Even though I am very concerned about the issue of PETN being exposed “by accident”, You were actually making a good point, Lindsay, with humor.