Posted on 05/25/2002 8:15:10 PM PDT by mrfixit514
Atlanta Channel 2 reports that "explosives" are missing. Anchor says they are the same as those used in OKC bombing. 240lbs of Ammonium Nitrate. FBI is investigating. Stolen from Robinson Paving Co. in Columbus GA.
http://www.accessatlanta.com/ajc/news/0502/25explosives.html Explosives stolen in Columbus
Associated Press Columbus -- Authorities are investigating the theft of a large amount of construction-grade explosives from a road-paving business. As many as five cases -- about 240 pounds -- of ammonium nitrate in stick form were taken from a steel-reinforced bunker at Robinson Paving, Columbus police Maj. Ricky Boren said Friday. The break-in was discovered Thursday, but could have happened as early as mid-March, he said. Ammonium nitrate is a key component of the explosive used to bomb the federal building in Oklahoma City in 1995. Boren said the company used it to blast rock for road construction. The FBI and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms, as well as all law enforcement in Columbus and Muskogee County, are involved in the investigation. "We don't have any intelligence information saying anything is being targeted, but because of the 9/11 incident, we feel like it's something everybody should be aware of," Boren said. Legal possession and use of the explosive is regulated by the ATF, Boren said. The theft was reported by company employees, who found the lock broken off the bunker Thursday. Police Lt. Bill Rawn, commander of the Columbus Metro Emergency Response Team, said ammonium nitrate is stable when properly handled and hydrated. In granular form, it is used to fertilize farm crops.
SAN FRANCISCO — The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms posted a $5,000 reward Friday for information leading to the location of a cache of explosives that was stolen earlier this month.
Special Agent in Charge John Torres said the explosives were stolen from a gold mining operation in Scott Bar, Calif., near the Oregon state line border.
According to the Siskiyou County sheriff's department, 700 pounds of dynamite were stolen, which is about two mining seasons' worth of explosives for the business.
The dynamite sticks were stolen between April 6 and May 18 from two locked boxes stored deep in the mine. ATF officials said the thieves had to cut through a door to get to the explosives.
Officials said there was no apparent terrorist link to the theft, but they could not rule out the possibility.
ATF officials urged anyone with information to call 1-888-ATF-BOMB.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
Of course they are - the Fourth of July is coming up and boys will be boys!
It isn't ammonium nitrate---ammonium nitrate is fertilizer. There is obviously something missing from the article, as ammonium nitrate only becomes an explosive when blended with some "fuel-type" material such as diesel fuel. You can go down to your local farm supply store and buy TONS of prilled ammonium nitrate.
From http://users.skynet.be/jeeper/page58.html
" NITRAMON"
"Another military explosive is Nitramon . This is an Ammonium Nitrate type of explosive which is desensitized . It is packed in a tin can 8 ¼-inch in diameter and 17-inches long, it weighs 40 pounds and is essentially designed for cratering (e.g. road surfaces) . Nitramon is grayish purple in color . It has a detonating velocity of 14,000 to 16,000 feet per second . Nitramon is relatively insensitive, and therefore requires a booster charge of more sensitive explosive to set it off . A booster charge consisting of Amatol is embedded in the center of the 40-pound can just opposite the tunnel."
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