Follow along with the video below to see how to install our site as a web app on your home screen.
Note: This feature may not be available in some browsers.
Texas launches criminal investigation into explosion at West fertiliser plantFederal agents arrest paramedic Bryce Reed, 31, as authorities investigate blast that killed 14 people last month.
A first responder to last month's fertiliser plant blast in West, Texas, was charged Friday with possession of a pipe bomb as authorities announced they were treating the deadly explosion as a criminal act.
Agents from the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) arrested paramedic Bryce Reed in the early hours of Friday. The 31-year-old later appeared in court on a count of possessing a destructive device.
Authorities have not said if the charge is related to the explosion at the West Fertilizer Company on 17 April, an incident that killed 14 people, left 200 others injured and flattened scores of homes.
But in another development Friday, Texas's Department of Public Safety confirmed that it had launched a criminal investigation into the blast.
State officials have instructed rangers and a sheriff's department to assist in the probe. Prior to Friday's developments, it was thought that the incident was being investigated as a potential industrial accident.
Texas launches criminal investigation into explosion at West fertiliser plant | World news | guardian.co.uk
You mean they LIED to us about what caused the explosion??????? Call Rep. Issa, stat!
You mean they LIED to us about what caused the explosion??????? Call Rep. Issa, stat!
who lied? This has not been an official explanation. They have always stated the investigation is ongoing. Nor have they pinned this guy with being responsible. This article just staes the guy was a paramedic there, and was found later to have a pipe bomb and was arrested. Comprehension problems? Try again.
You mean they LIED to us about what caused the explosion??????? Call Rep. Issa, stat!
who lied? This has not been an official explanation. They have always stated the investigation is ongoing. Nor have they pinned this guy with being responsible. This article just staes the guy was a paramedic there, and was found later to have a pipe bomb and was arrested. Comprehension problems? Try again.
They LIED! And there's no use you trying to cover for them now.
who lied? This has not been an official explanation. They have always stated the investigation is ongoing. Nor have they pinned this guy with being responsible. This article just staes the guy was a paramedic there, and was found later to have a pipe bomb and was arrested. Comprehension problems? Try again.
They LIED! And there's no use you trying to cover for them now.
Show me the releases from ATF, the FBI, etc. that show they stated any result from their investigation. Kind of hard to lie when you haven't made any accusation, yet.
I just heard that he was arrested just now.
According to the charges, the McLennan County Sheriff's Office was called to a house in Abbot, Texas, on Tuesday because of a possible destructive device, and arrived to find powders, metals and canisters filled with bomb-making materials.
An official with the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms said in an affidavit that officials found a metal pipe, canisters of fuses, a lighter, a digital scale, a plastic spoon, coils of metal and several pounds of chemicals at the residence and determined that they belonged to Reed. The resident of the home said he had unknowingly accepted the materials from Reed on April 26.
Reed later admitted to possessing the materials, the court documents said.
Paramedic Bryce Reed - who helped the victims of the West, Texas, fertiliser blast - pleads not guilty of possessing explosives - Americas - World - The IndependentReed was not charged for any crime connected to the plant explosion, which burned much of the property in the town of 2,800, and authorities would not say whether they believed there was any connection between Reed's arrest and the explosion.
...The Texas Department of Public Safety will use a criminal investigation to ensure that the explosion has been "looked at from every angle," according to a statement from its director Steven McCraw.
McCraw told local news reporters: "This disaster has severely impacted the community of West, and we want to ensure that no stone goes unturned and that all the facts related to this incident are uncovered."
He said that the department would not answer any questions or provide any other details about the investigation at this time.
The State Fire Marshal department said that investigators have interviewed "almost 300 people," and followed 160 leads in their initial investigation. The fire marshal has not yet released a cause for the explosion.
Texas launches criminal investigation into explosion at West fertiliser plantFederal agents arrest paramedic Bryce Reed, 31, as authorities investigate blast that killed 14 people last month.
A first responder to last month's fertiliser plant blast in West, Texas, was charged Friday with possession of a pipe bomb as authorities announced they were treating the deadly explosion as a criminal act.
Agents from the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) arrested paramedic Bryce Reed in the early hours of Friday. The 31-year-old later appeared in court on a count of possessing a destructive device.
Authorities have not said if the charge is related to the explosion at the West Fertilizer Company on 17 April, an incident that killed 14 people, left 200 others injured and flattened scores of homes.
But in another development Friday, Texas's Department of Public Safety confirmed that it had launched a criminal investigation into the blast.
State officials have instructed rangers and a sheriff's department to assist in the probe. Prior to Friday's developments, it was thought that the incident was being investigated as a potential industrial accident.
Texas launches criminal investigation into explosion at West fertiliser plant | World news | guardian.co.uk
You mean they LIED to us about what caused the explosion??????? Call Rep. Issa, stat!
pretty weird that kid had pipe bombs
The April 2013 blast at West Fertilizer Co. killed 15 people, including 12 men who were trying to stop the initial fire that investigators believe caused the detonation of stores of ammonium nitrate. The resulting explosion injured more than 200 people and leveled homes and schools in this tiny Central Texas city. The Texas State Fire Marshal's Office presented the findings of its year-long investigation in a report Thursday. The report says the firefighters at the plant are not to blame, but were victims of a "systemic deficiency in ... training and preparation." The report renews calls for state and local action to better prepare first-responders. "The lack of adherence to nationally recognized consensus standards and safety practices for the fire department exposed firefighters to excessive risks and failed to remove them from a critically dangerous situation," the report said. "The strategy and tactics utilized by the West Volunteer Fire Department were not appropriate for the rapidly developing and extremely volatile situation, and exposed the firefighters to extreme risks."
Investigators have concluded that while firefighters pouring water did not cause the explosion, they were trying to stop a blaze "significantly beyond the extinguishment phase." The report does not explain what caused the initial fire, which is perhaps the biggest remaining question about the tragedy. Federal and state investigators last year identified three possible causes of the fire: a golf cart battery, an electrical system or a criminal act.
The report echoes recommendations that fire experts and others who have investigated the blast have previously made. It says Texas should adopt training standards for volunteer firefighters and allow all counties to enact a fire code, which state law currently prohibits. Local firefighters and agencies need to establish plans for dealing with large-scale commercial fires and hazardous materials such as ammonium nitrate, a common ingredient in fertilizer that is sold all over Texas. The report also calls for a mandatory retrofitting of buildings that store ammonium nitrate to add sprinklers, which West Fertilizer Co. did not have.
Many of the first responders' widows, children and friends still live in the town of 2,800, known as a close-knit community with a strong Czech heritage inherited from the immigrants who settled there a century ago. Fire Marshal Chris Connealy introduced the report to some of them at a closed-door meeting Thursday night. "It's very hard because my husband walked out of the door for a fire calls and never came back," said Carmen Bridges, the widow of firefighter Morris Bridges. "And it could have been prevented." Speaking after the meeting, Bridges said she found some closure in hearing the fire marshal's findings and hoped they would help prevent a future incident. "Everybody's going to learn something from this," she said.
Texas agency: Firefighters unprepared for blast
Check out the firefighting film 'Bleve' to find out what it's like to be in such a blast...
Texas agency: Firefighters unprepared for blast
15 May`14 The firefighters who tried in vain to stop a burning Texas fertilizer plant from exploding weren't prepared for the dangers of the blaze, which was too big for them to fight, state investigators said in a report released Thursday.
The April 2013 blast at West Fertilizer Co. killed 15 people, including 12 men who were trying to stop the initial fire that investigators believe caused the detonation of stores of ammonium nitrate. The resulting explosion injured more than 200 people and leveled homes and schools in this tiny Central Texas city. The Texas State Fire Marshal's Office presented the findings of its year-long investigation in a report Thursday. The report says the firefighters at the plant are not to blame, but were victims of a "systemic deficiency in ... training and preparation." The report renews calls for state and local action to better prepare first-responders. "The lack of adherence to nationally recognized consensus standards and safety practices for the fire department exposed firefighters to excessive risks and failed to remove them from a critically dangerous situation," the report said. "The strategy and tactics utilized by the West Volunteer Fire Department were not appropriate for the rapidly developing and extremely volatile situation, and exposed the firefighters to extreme risks."
Investigators have concluded that while firefighters pouring water did not cause the explosion, they were trying to stop a blaze "significantly beyond the extinguishment phase." The report does not explain what caused the initial fire, which is perhaps the biggest remaining question about the tragedy. Federal and state investigators last year identified three possible causes of the fire: a golf cart battery, an electrical system or a criminal act.
The report echoes recommendations that fire experts and others who have investigated the blast have previously made. It says Texas should adopt training standards for volunteer firefighters and allow all counties to enact a fire code, which state law currently prohibits. Local firefighters and agencies need to establish plans for dealing with large-scale commercial fires and hazardous materials such as ammonium nitrate, a common ingredient in fertilizer that is sold all over Texas. The report also calls for a mandatory retrofitting of buildings that store ammonium nitrate to add sprinklers, which West Fertilizer Co. did not have.
Many of the first responders' widows, children and friends still live in the town of 2,800, known as a close-knit community with a strong Czech heritage inherited from the immigrants who settled there a century ago. Fire Marshal Chris Connealy introduced the report to some of them at a closed-door meeting Thursday night. "It's very hard because my husband walked out of the door for a fire calls and never came back," said Carmen Bridges, the widow of firefighter Morris Bridges. "And it could have been prevented." Speaking after the meeting, Bridges said she found some closure in hearing the fire marshal's findings and hoped they would help prevent a future incident. "Everybody's going to learn something from this," she said.
Texas agency: Firefighters unprepared for blast
But no arrests have been made and authorities are seeking who was responsible for the blaze. A massive explosion which caused a tremor as powerful as a small earthquake left part of the small town of West in ruins. Initially it was blamed on an industrial accident. On the night of 17 April 2013, a fire broke out at the West Fertilizer Co and was followed by an explosion that possessed the force of a 2.1-magnitude earthquake.
West Fertilizer Co plant
The explosion flattened homes, shattered a block of flats and badly damaged a nursing home and several schools. On Wednesday, the announcement that there was criminal intent was made by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) and the Texas State Fire Marshal's Office. In an exhaustive investigation, which included 400 interviews and a model recreation of the plant, they eventually ruled out all other possible causes.
They had previously said faulty electrical wiring, a short circuit in a golf cart stored at the plant or arson were among the possible reasons for the blaze. A reward of up to $50,000 has been offered for information about the culprit. Of the 15 people killed, 12 were emergency personnel attending the fire. Another 200 people in the small town of 2,800 were injured.
Deadly Texas fire 'was criminal act' - BBC News
Maybe you can put it on the conspiracy forum but it's obvious that you can't trust federal investigation to investigate the truth. They pretty much ignored the crazy enviro radicals who were burning SUV's and torching new construction in Arizona and the radicals suddenly disappeared when Hussein was elected. Next thing you know former terrorist Bill Ayers has a lot to say about democrat politics and bad things happen to (only) oil exploration in American waters. Now a plant in Texas suddenly explodes. Sabotage was a death penalty offense during WW2 and now it seems to be a political football that nobody wants to consider especially the political arm of the government they call the FBI.
Guy in my neighborhood made a pipe bomb and used a freakin mercury switch.Texas launches criminal investigation into explosion at West fertiliser plantFederal agents arrest paramedic Bryce Reed, 31, as authorities investigate blast that killed 14 people last month.
A first responder to last month's fertiliser plant blast in West, Texas, was charged Friday with possession of a pipe bomb as authorities announced they were treating the deadly explosion as a criminal act.
Agents from the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) arrested paramedic Bryce Reed in the early hours of Friday. The 31-year-old later appeared in court on a count of possessing a destructive device.
Authorities have not said if the charge is related to the explosion at the West Fertilizer Company on 17 April, an incident that killed 14 people, left 200 others injured and flattened scores of homes.
But in another development Friday, Texas's Department of Public Safety confirmed that it had launched a criminal investigation into the blast.
State officials have instructed rangers and a sheriff's department to assist in the probe. Prior to Friday's developments, it was thought that the incident was being investigated as a potential industrial accident.
Texas launches criminal investigation into explosion at West fertiliser plant | World news | guardian.co.uk
You mean they LIED to us about what caused the explosion??????? Call Rep. Issa, stat!
who lied? This has not been an official explanation. They have always stated the investigation is ongoing. Nor have they pinned this guy with being responsible. This article just states the guy was a paramedic there, and was found later to have a pipe bomb and was arrested. Comprehension problems? Try again.
The general of the OKANG had a son and he wanted free weapons, so he set the armory on fire....but it didn't burn, also had dynamite taped to the wall for when the fire increased it would blow up the building..It would not be the first time someone created a catastrophe to be a hero.
No wonder you drink sooo much, but then again they do it here also........Maybe you can put it on the conspiracy forum but it's obvious that you can't trust federal investigation to investigate the truth. They pretty much ignored the crazy enviro radicals who were burning SUV's and torching new construction in Arizona and the radicals suddenly disappeared when Hussein was elected. Next thing you know former terrorist Bill Ayers has a lot to say about democrat politics and bad things happen to (only) oil exploration in American waters. Now a plant in Texas suddenly explodes. Sabotage was a death penalty offense during WW2 and now it seems to be a political football that nobody wants to consider especially the political arm of the government they call the FBI.
Welcome to Politics. Chicago style.
I've been living under it most of my life. We call it the "Chicagonois Way".
