No Tripler yet but this stuff is also up my alley. The explosives listed as present and not already assembled into a detonator or confined in a bomb body will deflagrate (burn) from the heat of the fire rather than detonate (explode). The decision to burn down the house and not attempt to move the explosives is the correct one. All the listed items are sensitive to shock and friction. “Blowing in place” would set off the explosives in a detonation which would do much more damage locally (neighbors houses and property)
The detonators (if loaded) will explode due to the confinement and density of the explosive. Very small quantites in this case. It would sound like small arms ammunition popping off in a fire if even audible.
Based on the cited evacuation distances, very little explosive contribution is expected. The effects the authorities are concentrating on are intense fire locally and airborne chemical contamination downwind of the house. All the trash mixed with the chemicals present will make a strange brew from the fire.
This will be more of a chemical burn than an explosive event. Of course, if the guy buried several hundred pounds previously made under the house or in a crawl space - there will be a crater:eek:
In addition, if the perpetrator in question where manufacturing explosives in a wood frame structure or unsealed concrete floor, there is a good chance that the solvents used will have been deposited and absorbed by those materials, making the entire structure a toxic and combustion hazard site to working personnel. Controlled burning the materials, thereby dispersing the solvents into the atmosphere, is the least hazardous course of action. A followup washdown and mop-up should dilute any residual products. I personally wouldn’t want to live next door to this house, but it is probably no worse a health hazard than swimming in a lake after a heavy rainstorm.
I’m actually a member of CERT (Community Emergency Response Team), but I doubt they’ll be activating us unless it really does go to Hell in a handbasket.
The burn is currently scheduled for 9 a.m. tomorrow (Thursday), which is something of a pain in the ass, as they will be closing down I-15 in both directions for at least an hour, and i work about 10 minutes from Escondido. The stretch of I-15 that i use to get to work won’t actually be closed, but i’m betting that there will still be some traffic backup, so i’m going to have to leave about half an hour earlier tomorrow.
In an interesting development, the suspect’s lawyer has put in an emergency request to stop the burning, on the fairly reasonable grounds that:
They are preparing to set fire to the house at ~10:30 a.m. today (about 10 minutes from now), weather permitting. They have evacuated homes in the area and closed Interstate 15 which runs adjacent to the property.
It is on none of the news networks at the moment. Seriously? They have more interesting things than a house filled with explosives being deliberately burned down?
By the way, it baffles me that the TV station would run a live feed but devote two-thirds of the screen to a meaningless blank background. Why not fill the whole screen?
That house is fully engulfed and even on the wane now, point being that any possibility of an explosion should be past. That and with the smoke column moving straight up, I wish they’d go ahead and let the considerable traffic resume use of the highway.
The one positive for all those stuck travellers, at least it wasn’t the most boring traffic jam ever.