Federal investigators have joined the investigation of a missing shipment of 30 tons of ammonium nitrate that can be used to make high explosives like the one used in the Oklahoma City bombing.
Approximately 60,000 pounds of the chemical, which was in the form of pellets, went missing during a two-week trip from Cheyenne, Wyoming, to Saltdale, California.
The shipment left a manufacturing site for Dyno Nobel, an explosives maker, on April 12 and the report on the lack of ammonium nitrate was made on May 10.
Preliminary investigations suggest that a leak in the wagon carrying the chemical caused it to spill during the journey. Union Pacific, the carrier that made the delivery, told DailyMail.com that it does not believe there was any “criminal or malicious activity involved”.
But neither the railway nor Dyno Nobel – whose explosive products are used in mining – have confirmed whether the chemical has been located or what caused it to disappear.
The ammonium nitrate shipment disappeared during a two-week voyage from Dyno Nobel’s plant in Cheyenne, Wyoming, to Saltdale, California. A map indicates the routes you might have taken along the Union Pacific rail network.
The shipment left a manufacturing site for Dyno Nobel (pictured), an explosives maker, on April 12 and the report on the missing ammonium nitrate was made on May 10.
Ammonium nitrate was a key component in the bomb used by domestic terrorists Timothy McVeigh and Terry Nichols to carry out the Oklahoma City bombing, which killed 168 people.
Ammonium nitrate was a key component in the bomb used by domestic terrorists Timothy McVeigh and Terry Nichols to carry out the Oklahoma City bombing, which killed 168 people.
In the attack on April 19, 1995, between 1,000 and 2,000 pounds of the chemical were used, meaning that the amount that disappeared could be used to create around 30 equivalent explosives. The Alfred P. Murrah Federal Building was destroyed in the blast.
In another incident in 2013, 15 people were killed and more than 260 injured when ammonium nitrate exploded at a fertilizer plant in West, Texas.
More than 200 people died when around 2,750 tons of ammonium nitrate exploded in the port of Beirut in Lebanon. The colossal explosion also injured 7,000 people and caused $15 billion in damage.
Ammonium nitrate fertilizer costs around $600 per ton, so the lost shipment would have been worth around $18,000.
A map of the Union Pacific network indicates that the shipment may have traveled via tracks in Denver and Utah, or through Wyoming and Utah, before passing through Nevada and California.
Dyno Nobel was contacted for comment. The company previously said ammonium nitrate is believed to have leaked from the car during the journey.
Timothy McVeigh (left) and Terry Nichols (right) used ammonium nitrate in the explosives used in the Oklahoma City bombing. Officials investigating the missing shipment said they do not suspect “any criminal or malicious activity involved.”
More than 200 people died when around 2,750 tons of ammonium nitrate exploded in the port of Beirut in Lebanon.
The colossal explosion in Lebanon also injured 7,000 people and caused $15 billion in damage.
The wagon was sealed when it left the Cheyenne facility, and the seals were still intact when it arrived in Saltdale. The initial assessment is that a leak through the carriage’s lower hatch may have developed in transit,” a spokesperson said.
A Union Pacific spokeswoman told DailyMail.com: ‘Our investigation is still ongoing at this time. Union Pacific cannot comment on the details or status of an active investigation, other than to say that, at this point in the investigation, we do not believe any criminal or malicious activity was involved.’
Stan Blake, a former Wyoming state legislator and retired train conductor, told Cowboy State Daily that it wouldn’t be difficult to empty one of the hopper cars of its load of pellets.
The carriages have two or three sections, Blake said, and there is a door at the bottom of them. “You can use a big bar and open that door and it will spill out,” he said.
He also suggested that the pellets may never have made it onto the train in the first place, since with a moving conveyor belt, the chemical can be transported from the open door to a truck.
Union Pacific, which operated the train carrying the explosive chemicals, said that if the pellets had leaked from the train, they would be harmless. Pictured is a Union Pacific train transporting bulk grain through Kansas
A map shows the origin of the shipment and the point in Saltdale, California, where workers realized the ammonium nitrate was missing.
He said that sometimes the cars were registered as carrying loads, but they were empty and vice versa.
He said that sometimes when the cars were attached they could crash and some would spill out. He told the store that he knows people who pick it up in plastic bags and put it on their lawn.
“It’s a great fertilizer,” he said.
The Federal Railroad Authority said both Dyno Nobel and Union Pacific could face federal sanctions if they are found to have committed any rule violations that led to the chemical’s disappearance.
A spokesperson added: ‘While Union Pacific and Dyno Nobel investigate this incident, they must engage all necessary parties, including law enforcement, to ensure that potential causes and impacts are promptly and thoroughly addressed.
‘UP’s initial findings suggest that it is likely a leak caused by a component of the train carriage. Rail carriers and railways are responsible for ensuring that wagons are properly secured.’
