4 ms·

I recently read about the Oppau disaster (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oppau_explosion https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oppau_explosion ), where the workers were

by jabl 4y ago

I recently read about the Oppau disaster (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oppau_explosion https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oppau_explosion ), where the workers were getting bored with using pickaxes to break up a huge pile of compressed ammonium sulfate and ammonium nitrate, and decided to use dynamite to loosen it up. What could possibly go wrong?

jandrese 4y ago
The crazy thing about that is they had broken up the Ammonium Sulfate/Ammonium Nitrate mixture thousands of times before the incident. It was incredible that they managed to do so for as long as they did. All it took was one day where the mixture wasn't mixed very well and everyone dies. An industrial version of Russian Roulette.
- Xylakant 4y ago
  It was considered safe at the time because the mixture is usually not very sensitive. Hindsight is 20/20.
  - Someone 4y ago
    > It was considered safe at the time I know they thought so, but also wonder why they thought so. Yes, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_ammonium_nitrate_disasters#Timeline_of_major_disasters https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_ammonium_nitrate_disas... says: “the factory had used this method of disaggregation over 20,000 times without incident” But it also mentions what happened less than two months before the Oppau explosion: “July 26, 1921: workers tried to dislodge 30 tonnes of ammonium nitrate that had aggregated (solidified into one mass) in two wagons. When mining explosives were used on this solid mass the wagons exploded and killed nineteen people” Separation between the two disasters is about 1,000 km, but both were in Germany. Surely, they must have heard what happened there. Why didn’t that make them reconsider using this technique? And why didn’t that second explosion prevent what happened in Tessenderlo in 1942 “An attempt to disaggregate a pile of 150 tonnes of ammonium nitrate with industrial explosives killed 189 people and wounded another 900”? That’s about 300km, as the crow flies, from Oppau.
- renewiltord 4y ago
  Famous saying in Safety Engineering: everything that can go wrong will go right most of the time.

by jabl 4y ago

jandrese 4y ago

The crazy thing about that is they had broken up the Ammonium Sulfate/Ammonium Nitrate mixture thousands of times before the incident. It was incredible that they managed to do so for as long as they did. All it took was one day where the mixture wasn't mixed very well and everyone dies. An industrial version of Russian Roulette.

Xylakant 4y ago
It was considered safe at the time because the mixture is usually not very sensitive. Hindsight is 20/20.
- Someone 4y ago
  > It was considered safe at the time I know they thought so, but also wonder why they thought so. Yes, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_ammonium_nitrate_disasters#Timeline_of_major_disasters https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_ammonium_nitrate_disas... says: “the factory had used this method of disaggregation over 20,000 times without incident” But it also mentions what happened less than two months before the Oppau explosion: “July 26, 1921: workers tried to dislodge 30 tonnes of ammonium nitrate that had aggregated (solidified into one mass) in two wagons. When mining explosives were used on this solid mass the wagons exploded and killed nineteen people” Separation between the two disasters is about 1,000 km, but both were in Germany. Surely, they must have heard what happened there. Why didn’t that make them reconsider using this technique? And why didn’t that second explosion prevent what happened in Tessenderlo in 1942 “An attempt to disaggregate a pile of 150 tonnes of ammonium nitrate with industrial explosives killed 189 people and wounded another 900”? That’s about 300km, as the crow flies, from Oppau.
renewiltord 4y ago
Famous saying in Safety Engineering: everything that can go wrong will go right most of the time.