Rockrivr1
May 11, 2006, 01:31 PM
Tanker may be blown up to test Harbor worst-case scenario
A major fuel company is in talks to blow up an LNG tanker in the ocean in a first-of-its-kind test that could answer questions about what might happen if one of the fuel-filled ships were attacked in Boston Harbor.
The fiery experiment was recently proposed to U.S. Rep. Michael Capuano, a Somerville Democrat who is keenly interested since many of his constituents live in Boston-area neighborhoods that could be affected in a Hub LNG attack or accident.
Capuano said he met with officials from an unnamed liquefied natural gas company who said they are considering taking an old, gas-filled tanker and “hitting it with a missile to see what happens.”
“It’s just never happened so all the studies are based on scientific guestimates. It would provide the answers,” Capuano said. He added: “If they do it, I want to go.”
While some may be shocked at the idea of blowing up an LNG tanker in the middle of the ocean, Capuano said the idea has merit.
“I don’t like frightening people. I want to see evidence,” he said. “I’d like to know the truth and right now there are no definitive studies.”
U.S. Coast Guard officials said fuel companies sometimes conduct sanctioned spill and fire tests in the ocean, although there has never been such a large-scale experiment with a gas tanker.
“There’s never been one detonated, but everyone is always looking for ways to model and looking for the best way to predict how an incident might play out,” said Angela McArdle, a Coast Guard spokeswoman in Washington, D.C.
She added that the Coast Guard was unaware of any concrete plans for a controlled tanker explosion.
News of the possible testing comes as New England lawmakers push for a summit with energy officials to find the best locations for new LNG facilities. There are proposals for as many as 13 new facilities from Maine to Maryland, including one in Fall River and two off the coast of Boston.
A recent federally commissioned study by Sandia National Laboratories found that flames from a tanker hit by a terrorist attack could conceivably yield “major injuries and significant damage to property” for up to three-tenths of a mile. People could get second-degree burns up to a mile away. Another study found that an attack could shoot searing thermal radiation up to a half-mile.
I wonder what type of missile they will use to test this. Just to see, I wonder if a 50 BMG API would cause an explosion.
A major fuel company is in talks to blow up an LNG tanker in the ocean in a first-of-its-kind test that could answer questions about what might happen if one of the fuel-filled ships were attacked in Boston Harbor.
The fiery experiment was recently proposed to U.S. Rep. Michael Capuano, a Somerville Democrat who is keenly interested since many of his constituents live in Boston-area neighborhoods that could be affected in a Hub LNG attack or accident.
Capuano said he met with officials from an unnamed liquefied natural gas company who said they are considering taking an old, gas-filled tanker and “hitting it with a missile to see what happens.”
“It’s just never happened so all the studies are based on scientific guestimates. It would provide the answers,” Capuano said. He added: “If they do it, I want to go.”
While some may be shocked at the idea of blowing up an LNG tanker in the middle of the ocean, Capuano said the idea has merit.
“I don’t like frightening people. I want to see evidence,” he said. “I’d like to know the truth and right now there are no definitive studies.”
U.S. Coast Guard officials said fuel companies sometimes conduct sanctioned spill and fire tests in the ocean, although there has never been such a large-scale experiment with a gas tanker.
“There’s never been one detonated, but everyone is always looking for ways to model and looking for the best way to predict how an incident might play out,” said Angela McArdle, a Coast Guard spokeswoman in Washington, D.C.
She added that the Coast Guard was unaware of any concrete plans for a controlled tanker explosion.
News of the possible testing comes as New England lawmakers push for a summit with energy officials to find the best locations for new LNG facilities. There are proposals for as many as 13 new facilities from Maine to Maryland, including one in Fall River and two off the coast of Boston.
A recent federally commissioned study by Sandia National Laboratories found that flames from a tanker hit by a terrorist attack could conceivably yield “major injuries and significant damage to property” for up to three-tenths of a mile. People could get second-degree burns up to a mile away. Another study found that an attack could shoot searing thermal radiation up to a half-mile.
I wonder what type of missile they will use to test this. Just to see, I wonder if a 50 BMG API would cause an explosion.
