Tragedy in Tianjin

[theAlaskanBear]

I don't normally post these things, but since last night I have glued to the news coming out of Tianjin, China, where a couple of explosions rocked a chemical storage facility and warehouse district. Over 50 have been confirmed dead + hundreds injured, and that total will rise. Among other things, the site stored 700 tons of sodium cyanide. There are mass evacuations of residents and emergency responders are having problems putting out the blaze due to its chemical properties and the toxic smoke. This is will be one of the worst industrial disasters in China's history, and hopefully will spur increased awareness and safety measures. The level of environmental contamination remains to be seen, but Chinese officials are 'optimistic' that the majority will settle in the Bohai sea.

This video (wait for the second explosion) will give you an idea how big it was.

http://www.theguardian.com/world/live/2015/aug/13/tianjin-explosion-hundreds-injured-killed-china-blasts-latest-updates

[theAlaskanBear]

I have never seen anything like this. The forces are mind-boggling to think about: http://i.imgur.com/ruY55kK.gif

[Tom B.]

I don't normally post these things, but since last night I have glued to the news coming out of Tianjin, China, where a couple of explosions rocked a chemical storage facility and warehouse district. Over 50 have been confirmed dead + hundreds injured, and that total will rise. Among other things, the site stored 700 tons of sodium cyanide. There are mass evacuations of residents and emergency responders are having problems putting out the blaze due to its chemical properties and the toxic smoke. This is will be one of the worst industrial disasters in China's history, and hopefully will spur increased awareness and safety measures. The level of environmental contamination remains to be seen, but Chinese officials are 'optimistic' that the majority will settle in the Bohai sea.

This video (wait for the second explosion) will give you an idea how big it was.

http://www.theguardian.com/world/live/2015/aug/13/tianjin-explosion-hundreds-injured-killed-china-blasts-latest-updates


From the article:


The explosions were so massive they could be seen from space, according to satellite photos released by the Japan meteorological agency. The force of the blast also prompted alarm at China’s National Earthquake Network.

Yikes.

There are videos of the explosions all over YouTube. Scary stuff.

[alteran]

I don't normally post these things, but since last night I have glued to the news coming out of Tianjin, China, where a couple of explosions rocked a chemical storage facility and warehouse district. Over 50 have been confirmed dead + hundreds injured, and that total will rise. Among other things, the site stored 700 tons of sodium cyanide. There are mass evacuations of residents and emergency responders are having problems putting out the blaze due to its chemical properties and the toxic smoke. This is will be one of the worst industrial disasters in China's history, and hopefully will spur increased awareness and safety measures. The level of environmental contamination remains to be seen, but Chinese officials are 'optimistic' that the majority will settle in the Bohai sea.

This video (wait for the second explosion) will give you an idea how big it was.

http://www.theguardian.com/world/live/2015/aug/13/tianjin-explosion-hundreds-injured-killed-china-blasts-latest-updates

Just some background for the ignorant like myself-- Tianjin is a HUGE city. The population of Tianjin itself is 7 million and greater Tianjin is 15 million.

That's like this happening in Chicago or New York.