NO the fuel is not the ignition source you misunderstand. you need both the oxidizer and a fuel source to create the potential for combustion or explosion. now could the first explosion have mixed a bunch of stuff up or spead the ammonium nitrate around ? maybe. maybe the thick smoke acted as a fuel source? I dunno. What I do know is Israel recently threatened the !!!! outta Lebanon over the Hezbollah attacks.... so it could very well have been an attack by Israel, but also could be accident as well. All I know is my chemistry knowledge says this is fishy and that something VERY VERY unique would have to had occurred to produce such a uniform devastating explosion like that.
Heat and pressure can ignite this stuff.
There might have been other chemicals mixed in to prevent moisture caking as this stuff was being shipped over water in a cargo hold before it was unloaded and stored.
High temps increase ammonium nitrate chemical activity...AND it produces its own oxygen.
There was plenty of heat and yellow smoke coming from the first fire.
Look at the color of the smoke just before the big explosion...red orange.
There is a picture out there of the ammonium nitrate in the warehouse.
Big wrapped bales of this stuff stacked high in that warehouse on top of each other.
I doubt this was terrorism, more likely just stupidity and the perfect storm of bad luck events that triggered the massive chemical explosion.
This is how the Texas City explosion happened.
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The ammonium nitrate, needed either as fertilizer or an explosive, was manufactured in Nebraska and Iowa and shipped to Texas City by rail before being loaded onto the Grandcamp.[4] It was manufactured in a patented process, mixed with clay, petrolatum, rosin and paraffin wax to avoid moisture caking. It was packaged in paper sacks, then transported and stored at higher temperatures that increased its chemical activity. Longshoremen reported the bags were warm to the touch before loading.
On April 16, 1947, around 8:00 a.m., smoke was spotted in the cargo hold of the Grandcamp while she was still moored. Over the next hour, attempts to extinguish the fire or bring it under control failed, as a red glow returned after each effort to douse the fire.
Shortly before 9:00 a.m., the captain ordered his men to steam the hold, a firefighting method where steam is piped in to extinguish fires, in order to preserve the cargo. This was unlikely to be effective, as
ammonium nitrate produces its own oxygen, thus neutralizing the extinguishing properties of steam. The steam may have contributed to the fire by converting the ammonium nitrate to nitrous oxide, while augmenting the already intense heat in the ship's hold.[5]
The fire attracted spectators along the shoreline, who believed they were at a safe distance.[6] Eventually, the steam pressure inside the ship blew the hatches open, and yellow-orange smoke billowed out. This color is typical for nitrogen dioxide fumes.[1] The unusual color of the smoke attracted more spectators. Spectators also noted that the water around the docked ship was boiling from the heat, and the splashing water touching the hull was being vaporized into steam. The cargo hold and deck began to bulge as the pressure of the steam increased inside.
This 2-ton anchor was thrown more than 1.6 miles when the Grandcamp exploded
At 9:12 a.m., the ammonium nitrate reached an explosive threshold from the combination of heat and pressure.[7] The vessel detonated, causing great destruction and damage throughout the port. The tremendous blast produced a 15-foot (4.5 m) wave that was detectable nearly 100 miles (160 km) from the Texas shoreline. The blast leveled nearly 1,000 buildings on land. The Grandcamp explosion destroyed the Monsanto Chemical Company plant and resulted in ignition of refineries and chemical tanks on the waterfront. Falling bales of burning twine from the ship's cargo added to the damage, and the Grandcamp's anchor was hurled across the city. Two sightseeing airplanes flying nearby were blown out of the sky,[8] while 10 miles (16 km) away, half of the windows in Galveston were shattered.[9] The explosion blew almost 6,350 short tons (5,760 metric tons) of the ship's steel into the air, some at supersonic speed. Official casualty estimates came to a total of 567, including all the crewmen who remained aboard the Grandcamp. All but one member of the 28-man Texas City volunteer fire department were killed in the initial explosion on the docks while fighting the shipboard fire. With fires raging throughout Texas City, first responders from other areas were initially unable to reach the site of the disaster.
The first explosion ignited ammonium nitrate in the nearby cargo ship High Flyer. The crews spent hours attempting to cut the High Flyer free from her anchor and other obstacles, in order to move her, without success. After smoke had been pouring from the hold for over 5 hours, and about 15 hours after the explosions aboard the Grandcamp, the High Flyer exploded, demolishing the nearby SS Wilson B. Keene, killing at least two more people and increasing the damage to the port and other ships with more shrapnel and burning material. One of the propellers on the High Flyer was blown off and subsequently found nearly a mile inland. It is now part of a memorial park and is located near the anchor of the Grandcamp. The propeller is cracked in several places, and one blade has a large piece missing.
The cause of the initial fire on board the Grandcamp was never determined. It may have been started by a cigarette discarded the previous day, meaning the ship's cargo had been smouldering throughout the night when the fire was discovered on the morning of the day of the explosion.[1]