"Forest Fire" responsible for a 2.5mi *mushroom cloud*?

[Peter Gutmann]

"Major Variola (ret)" <mv at cdc.gov> writes:

>AN is extremely deliquescent; perhaps the sulphate was for that?

No, it was specifically required as a desensitiser by the European nitrogen
cartel, since they felt the pure nitrate was too dangerous for processing into
fertiliser.

>Removing chunks with dynamite is trying rather hard for a Darwin award.

As I said, at the time its explosive properties weren't known so this wasn't
unreasonable.  There are numerous stories of multi-thousand-ton ammonium
nitrate piles burning for hours without exploding (Oppau was the first time
there was any significant explosion involving it).  Even after Texas City,
there were cases of (embarrassed) firefighters watching warehouses full of
ammonium nitrate quietly burn to the ground without incident.

Peter.