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Posted: 11/12/2012 7:15:32 AM EDT
[#1]
Anyone else think it was some form of munition?
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Posted: 11/12/2012 7:32:30 AM EDT
[#2]
Quoted:
Quoted:
this is EXACTLY why i won't live in subdision with homes that close together. Yeah, because you know, that happens all the time. Nearly as often as being hit by a meteorite. It really is pretty damn rare, for every house that has a fire due to a gas leak, thousands catch on fire due to electrical problems/overloading. It's why you don't see much reporting on those and massive reporting when it's gas related. |
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Posted: 11/12/2012 7:49:58 AM EDT
[#3]
Quoted:
Anyone else think it was some form of munition? I think it was somebody stole an appliance from a semi-vacant and left the gas line open. Or someone was trying to get out from under a mortgage they could not pay. Would have to see better pics to get an idea of any brisance. |
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Posted: 11/12/2012 11:15:36 AM EDT
[#4]
Not a normal explosion when 31 homes might have to be demolished.
Massive Indianapolis explosion baffles investigators Deputy Code Enforcement Director Adam Collins said 80 homes were damaged including 31 that might need to be demolished. He estimated the damage at $3.6 million.
“We have done initial testing throughout the neighborhood and have not found any gas leaks," Dan Considine, Citizens Energy spokesman, told IndyStar.com Monday.
"We are still doing additional testing of the gas main and the lines to the homes on Fieldfare Way,” he said. “We have not at this point found any problems with any external gas lines.” http://usnews.nbcnews.com/_news/2012/11/12/15110656-massive-indianapolis-explosion-baffles-investigators?lite |
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Posted: 11/12/2012 11:17:50 AM EDT
[#5]
Quoted:
Anyone else think it was some form of munition? Seems a munition powerful enough to do that kind of damage would leave a crater. Those houses were just blown up and out. |
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Posted: 11/12/2012 11:20:35 AM EDT
[#6]
Well since it wasnt gas....
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Posted: 11/12/2012 11:30:29 AM EDT
[#7]
Good shoot.
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Posted: 11/12/2012 11:48:45 AM EDT
[#8]
The said it wasn't a gas leak, not that it wasn't gas. A propane bottle, open, could do the same.
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Posted: 11/12/2012 12:00:30 PM EDT
[#9]
Don't people have yards in IN?
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Posted: 11/12/2012 12:04:47 PM EDT
[#10]
God DAYUM!
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Posted: 11/12/2012 2:18:35 PM EDT
[#11]
Quoted:
The said it wasn't a gas leak, not that it wasn't gas. A propane bottle, open, could do the same. They were only talking about the external [utility] lines. What was going on inside the house...............we'll never know. I did hear that the owner said his daughter was saying that there "might" have been something wrong with the furnace but depending on the age of it, that's not very likely if it was a newer one. Even and older thermocouple type 70% standard one that had a failed safety would vent the majority of NG up the chimney where it would be noticed by the homeowners around them and it would take a long time to build up inside the house. A newer one with an electronic ignition...........not going to happen. I'm not really believing what the homeowner is saying, especially if there were furnace issues and cold weather and he didn't bother to call a repair company to have it repaired. Customers do NOT act like that, they tend to be freaky when they may not have heat. If that subdivision was built by a tract housing builder, I'm betting all the furnaces are going to be alike or very similar and it would be easy enough to check with both the builder and other houses to see what furnaces were installed. |
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Posted: 11/12/2012 2:22:53 PM EDT
[#12]
Not terrorism.
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Posted: 11/12/2012 2:30:35 PM EDT
[#13]
Quoted:
Don't people have yards in IN? Many of us do. Some people just like to live in neighborhoods. 
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Posted: 11/12/2012 2:52:41 PM EDT
[#14]
Count down to some environmentalist claiming it was accumulated gas in ground water due to fracking?
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Posted: 11/12/2012 3:30:34 PM EDT
[#15]
Dark Red: Demolished or to be demolished Orange: No occupancy, no access to personal property Yellow: No occupancy, can access personal property Green: No occupancy, Department of Code Enforcement will assess damage
There certainly looks like there is a dent in the ground in this picture: 
Note to self make sure you keep pictures and other family items backed up some place. It looks like they're telling people you can't go back into some homes at all. |
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Posted: 11/12/2012 3:40:51 PM EDT
[#16]
Quoted:
Dark Red: Demolished or to be demolished Orange: No occupancy, no access to personal property Yellow: No occupancy, can access personal property Green: No occupancy, Department of Code Enforcement will assess damage http://media.theindychannel.com/photo/2012/11/12/map_explosion_1352746517356_325689_ver1.0_640_480.jpg There certainly looks like there is a dent in the ground in this picture: http://media.philly.com/images/757*395/20121112_inq_indiana12-a.JPG Note to self make sure you keep pictures and other family items backed up some place. It looks like they're telling people you can't go back into some homes at all. Show me what to sign to get rid of any liability you think you have, but I'm going back in. |
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Posted: 11/12/2012 3:43:31 PM EDT
[#17]
Quoted:
Quoted:
Dark Red: Demolished or to be demolished Orange: No occupancy, no access to personal property Yellow: No occupancy, can access personal property Green: No occupancy, Department of Code Enforcement will assess damage http://media.theindychannel.com/photo/2012/11/12/map_explosion_1352746517356_325689_ver1.0_640_480.jpg There certainly looks like there is a dent in the ground in this picture: http://media.philly.com/images/757*395/20121112_inq_indiana12-a.JPG Note to self make sure you keep pictures and other family items backed up some place. It looks like they're telling people you can't go back into some homes at all. Show me what to sign to get rid of any liability you think you have, but I'm going back in. No kidding. "No occupancy, no access to personal property"? FU |
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Posted: 11/12/2012 3:50:47 PM EDT
[#18]
those other structures lookeminetly repairable to me
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Posted: 11/12/2012 3:52:55 PM EDT
[#19]
Quoted:
those other structures lookeminetly repairable to me Like anyone wants some code enforcement goon going through their wife's underwear drawers* *hey, that's redundant. That was one BF blast to make that much real estate uninhabitable. Cheap houses are cheap, I guess. |
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Posted: 11/12/2012 3:59:01 PM EDT
[#20]
Quoted:
Quoted:
Quoted:
Dark Red: Demolished or to be demolished Orange: No occupancy, no access to personal property Yellow: No occupancy, can access personal property Green: No occupancy, Department of Code Enforcement will assess damage http://media.theindychannel.com/photo/2012/11/12/map_explosion_1352746517356_325689_ver1.0_640_480.jpg There certainly looks like there is a dent in the ground in this picture: http://media.philly.com/images/757*395/20121112_inq_indiana12-a.JPG Note to self make sure you keep pictures and other family items backed up some place. It looks like they're telling people you can't go back into some homes at all. Show me what to sign to get rid of any liability you think you have, but I'm going back in. No kidding. "No occupancy, no access to personal property"? FU That's what I was thinking. I'm not going to try and salvage furniture fixtures clothes etc but I'm certainly not going to let some construction company come in to "demo" it aka removing jewellery, family heirlooms, certain electronics such as PC's with sensitive data etc. Quoted:
those other structures lookeminetly repairable to me If I had to guess there is probably a lot of hidden damage that would make it more costly to repair than to rebuild. An insurance company probably looks at it like a car. Repairs are 75% or whatever of the total value so total it. |
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Posted: 11/12/2012 4:00:51 PM EDT
[#21]
Quoted:
What's the Helvetica view looks like? snicker 
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Posted: 11/12/2012 4:34:00 PM EDT
[#22]
There was an incident like this a few years ago where a massive NG explosion took place and took out a big chunk of a neighborhood and people got killed . From what I have read, the people in the house complained of the furnace being out, they were not there when it happened, I assume the would have smelled the NG if it were leaking, and a massive amount of NG mixed with air and somehow detonated.
From looking at what happened during the San Bruno explosion, in this case it is very probable that a main got damaged and some unlucky (well lucky their furnace stopped working so the were staying somewhere else) homeowner got several hundred houses worth of NG into their house rapidly and ignited. I really doubt this was any sort of insurance fraud, but could be a bad excavation, geological shift, or worn or defective main pipes. |
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Posted: 11/12/2012 5:10:49 PM EDT
[#23]
Quoted:
those other structures lookeminetly repairable to me The houses nearby look repairable from a distance, but close-up shots on the news today showed they they've been shifted off the foundations/slabs. Some by more than a foot. Can't fix that...can only bulldoze and rebuild. |
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Posted: 11/12/2012 7:08:00 PM EDT
[#24]
Quoted:
Quoted:
So stop posting links with facts
You must be a union gas company employee so I will just save you the time and post part of the link. "If a gas leak occurs in underground piping, the surrounding soil or fresh concrete can absorb or oxidize the odorant so that the gas no longer has an odor. As a result, gas leaking from an underground pipe may not be detectable by smell." In my area the The gas company comes out if a customer calls. The gas company sends a guy with a detector who then most of the time will just say they detected something and shut off the gas. Then they tag the meter out and tell the customer to call a contractor to come out and find and repair leaks. We come out find and repair any leaks and wait for the gas company to come back out and clock meter and recheck with a detector. If all good gas gets turned back on. You seem to look down on the common working tradesman so what do you do for a living any way. I AM a common working tradesman. Non-union. Natural gas IS what I do for a living. What you posted simply isn't true, I don't give a shit how "factual" you think your info is. Just because you've experienced 100 or 1000 instances where it didn't happen, doesn't mean it can never happen. Soil is composed of many different chemicals. It is entirely plausible that some types might contain chemicals that could react with, neutralize or mask the odorant. Also, human beings have a varying ability to detect it. |
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Posted: 11/12/2012 7:35:38 PM EDT
[#25]
Looks like a MOAB was dropped on the Joneses.
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Posted: 11/12/2012 7:58:21 PM EDT
[#26]
Mr and Mrs Smith?
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Posted: 11/13/2012 3:05:08 AM EDT
[#27]
It's bullshit if they really are kept from getting personal property. They should be allowed to try!
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Posted: 11/13/2012 4:46:49 AM EDT
[#28]
Anyone toss out the idea it may have been a hydrogen cook off?
Over charged battery, Hydrogen vapor build up = epic boom. |
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Posted: 11/13/2012 5:14:37 AM EDT
[#29]
Quoted:
Anyone toss out the idea it may have been a hydrogen cook off? Over charged battery, Hydrogen vapor build up = epic boom. Don't think there's enough water to disassociate in a normal battery to make that big a bang. Would have to calculate, but am guessing at best you might get tens to a hundred or so cu ft of H2 from overcharge. This looks way more like a couple thousand cubic feet of methane. |
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Posted: 11/13/2012 3:39:37 PM EDT
[#30]
Quoted:
Quoted:
Anyone toss out the idea it may have been a hydrogen cook off? Over charged battery, Hydrogen vapor build up = epic boom. Don't think there's enough water to disassociate in a normal battery to make that big a bang. Would have to calculate, but am guessing at best you might get tens to a hundred or so cu ft of H2 from overcharge. This looks way more like a couple thousand cubic feet of methane. Well, someone could of had a diesel submarine in their basement. The hydrogen gas from those sub batteries is probably what caused the explosion. |
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Posted: 11/13/2012 3:42:02 PM EDT
[#31]
I going with a chevy volt caused the explosion.
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Posted: 11/13/2012 3:42:54 PM EDT
[#32]
Quoted:
Meth lab? my guess as well. |
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Posted: 11/13/2012 3:45:28 PM EDT
[#33]
Scott Davis, president and principal engineer of GexCon US, an explosion investigation firm in Bethesda, Md., said it's hard to believe a furnace could cause the damage seen in the Indianapolis neighborhood. He noted that most furnaces have multiple safety switches that must be triggered before any gas is used.
For an explosion to occur, he said, the amount of natural gas in a confined space must reach a certain level before it can ignite. In many cases, ventilation or a low flow of fuel prevents an explosion from being strong enough to level multiple houses, he said.
Holsapple said investigators are looking at the gas meter for the home believed to have been the starting point for the blast, but she wouldn't comment on whether the house had unusually high gas usage in recent days. http://www.cbsnews.com/8301-201_162-57548984/natural-gas-fueled-appliances-investigated-in-indy-home-explosion/ |
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Posted: 11/13/2012 3:49:19 PM EDT
[#34]
Quoted:
Quoted:
Meth lab? my guess as well. Not sure anyone has ever built a meth lab big enough to do that kind of damage. Besides, there's a distinct lack of mobile homes and rusted out Camaros in the photo. |
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Posted: 11/13/2012 3:49:39 PM EDT
[#35]
Citizens Energy Rules Out Gas Leaks In Blast
Citizens Energy Spokesperson Sarah Holsapple also confirms that Citizens Energy Group found no leaks in the gas main or individual gas lines that feed homes in the area where the blast occurred. Holsapple says it'll be up to the investigators on the scene to determine what caused the blast.
http://www.wibc.com/news/story.aspx?ID=1817574 |
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Posted: 11/13/2012 4:12:56 PM EDT
[#36]
Anything "fishy" about the people who lived there?
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Posted: 11/13/2012 4:18:58 PM EDT
[#37]
 You're gonna bust Dixie, you're gonna bust Dixie... |
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Posted: 11/13/2012 5:28:12 PM EDT
[#38]
Quoted:
Scott Davis, president and principal engineer of GexCon US, an explosion investigation firm in Bethesda, Md., said it's hard to believe a furnace could cause the damage seen in the Indianapolis neighborhood. He noted that most furnaces have multiple safety switches that must be triggered before any gas is used.
For an explosion to occur, he said, the amount of natural gas in a confined space must reach a certain level before it can ignite. In many cases, ventilation or a low flow of fuel prevents an explosion from being strong enough to level multiple houses, he said.
Holsapple said investigators are looking at the gas meter for the home believed to have been the starting point for the blast, but she wouldn't comment on whether the house had unusually high gas usage in recent days. http://www.cbsnews.com/8301-201_162-57548984/natural-gas-fueled-appliances-investigated-in-indy-home-explosion/ Unless it was read recently and the dials are intact, they won't find much info there. |
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Posted: 11/13/2012 5:40:40 PM EDT
[#39]
This one happened in my old neighborhood:
http://www.wral.com/news/local/video/1058281/#/vid1058281 Woke me up in the middle of the night and they were on the entire opposite end of he neighborhood. Wes |
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Posted: 11/13/2012 5:46:11 PM EDT
[#40]
Quoted: The said it wasn't a gas leak, not that it wasn't gas. A propane bottle, open, could do the same. Propane settles out. Acetylene mixes freely as its molecular weight is 26, air is 29 and change. Propane is 44. |
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Posted: 11/13/2012 5:46:19 PM EDT
[#41]
Quoted: Don't people have yards in IN? It's a house farm in a big city. What were you expecting? |
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Posted: 11/13/2012 6:12:56 PM EDT
[#42]
Not to be stupid, but is that area near any natural sources of gas?
Maybe a small, localized quake may have opened something up and released some truly natural gas into the house. Any sort of man-made explosive that would have caused a boom that big should have left easily found residue. |
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Posted: 11/13/2012 6:51:33 PM EDT
[#43]
For that much gas wouldn't you need a cracked main line in the house.
I'd have to check but I think the line running to my hot water heater in the attic is a 1" diameter. If a line like that cracked in the basement that would provide a large volume of gas? |
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Posted: 11/13/2012 7:24:31 PM EDT
[#44]
Quoted:
For that much gas wouldn't you need a cracked main line in the house. I'd have to check but I think the line running to my hot water heater in the attic is a 1" diameter. If a line like that cracked in the basement that would provide a large volume of gas? You're still only running 7 IWC, it would take a long time for a cracked line to get above the 5% minimum [and it wouldn't do that kind of damage to the houses around it] needed to actually ignite and explode. Because NG rises, it fills from the top down and always looks for a way out. I just don't think the way the main house exploded points just to NG, roof goes up, walls go out, roof comes back down. There isn't really a large initial fire after the explosion because it's so quick and once it detonates, you just don't get a large scale fire until the debris gets going if there is still open flames. Heck, the owner could have had 100 lbs of black powder stored in the basement for all they know. |
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Posted: 11/13/2012 7:57:25 PM EDT
[#45]
Quoted:
Quoted:
For that much gas wouldn't you need a cracked main line in the house. I'd have to check but I think the line running to my hot water heater in the attic is a 1" diameter. If a line like that cracked in the basement that would provide a large volume of gas? You're still only running 7 IWC, it would take a long time for a cracked line to get above the 5% minimum [and it wouldn't do that kind of damage to the houses around it] needed to actually ignite and explode. Because NG rises, it fills from the top down and always looks for a way out. I just don't think the way the main house exploded points just to NG, roof goes up, walls go out, roof comes back down. There isn't really a large initial fire after the explosion because it's so quick and once it detonates, you just don't get a large scale fire until the debris gets going if there is still open flames. Heck, the owner could have had 100 lbs of black powder stored in the basement for all they know. But if it wasn't NG, it would have had to been something on a VERY large scale correct? I keep looking at the pictures and thinking that whatever it was, it was massive. I mean, if it was gasoline it would probably take at least a couple hundred gallons to do that much damage. |
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Posted: 11/13/2012 8:17:05 PM EDT
[#46]
Modern, well-sealed basement and acetylene is my guess. Acetylene is damn violent and shock sensitive. Would not take much.
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Posted: 11/13/2012 8:21:07 PM EDT
[#47]
Quoted:
Modern, well-sealed basement and acetylene is my guess. Acetylene is damn violent and shock sensitive. Would not take much. Like a tank used for cutting torches or welding? Would only one tank be capable of that much damage? |
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Posted: 11/13/2012 8:27:35 PM EDT
[#48]
Quoted: Easily. Acetylene cannot be pressurized much, most cylinders are under 20 PSI, compared to 2250 PSI for oxygen/argon etc. Instead, acetylene is dissolved in acetone or other liquid solvent in the cylinder. This allows much greater volume of acetylene to be stored under much lower pressure, safely. The solvent stabilizes it.Quoted: Modern, well-sealed basement and acetylene is my guess. Acetylene is damn violent and shock sensitive. Would not take much. Like a tank used for cutting torches or welding? Would only one tank be capable of that much damage? Once withdrawn, pressure should never be above 15 PSI because it reacts without the need for oxygen, EXPLOSIVELY. Add oxygen and it is impressive. I've made small acetylene bombs, a gallon milk jug full of acetylene and oxygen will completely strip a square yard area of all grass. The plastic milk jug is shattered. Sounds like an illegal firework. Even 12 ounce beverage cans are impressive. About like an M80. I would say 120 cubic foot tank of acetylene would easily do that. |
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Posted: 11/13/2012 8:28:01 PM EDT
[#49]
ok technically this thread was first but... here is the thread of a guy who lives nearby.
http://www.ar15.com/forums/t_1_5/1389754_Massive_gas_explosion_about_a_quarter_mile_from_my_house_.html Disclaimer: Did not read through to see if it had already been posted. |
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Posted: 11/13/2012 8:30:18 PM EDT
[#50]
Quoted:
Quoted:
Easily. Acetylene cannot be pressurized much, most cylinders are under 20 PSI, compared to 2250 PSI for oxygen/argon etc. Instead, acetylene is dissolved in acetone or other liquid solvent in the cylinder. This allows much greater volume of acetylene to be stored under much lower pressure, safely. The solvent stabilizes it.
Quoted:
Modern, well-sealed basement and acetylene is my guess. Acetylene is damn violent and shock sensitive. Would not take much. Like a tank used for cutting torches or welding? Would only one tank be capable of that much damage? Once withdrawn, pressure should never be above 15 PSI because it reacts without the need for oxygen, EXPLOSIVELY. Add oxygen and it is impressive. I've made small acetylene bombs, a gallon milk jug full of acetylene and oxygen will completely strip a square yard area of all grass. The plastic milk jug is shattered. Sounds like an illegal firework. Even 12 ounce beverage cans are impressive. About like an M80. I would say 120 cubic foot tank of acetylene would easily do that. Interesting. Not really out of the ordinary for somebody to be a welder or fabricator and be storing stuff in the basement vs. garage. |
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