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Iraq power plant in flames after possible sabotage
Smoke and flames rose from a Baghdad electricity storage plant today but it was not clear whether saboteurs started the fire or it was an accident. Thick tongues of flame and plumes of black smoke rose from the plant in the western district of Ameriya as fire engines arrived to attempt to extinguish the blaze which officials said had caused significant damage. Police at the scene said without elaborating the plant had been sabotaged, but employees said the fire had broken out after a power cable apparently snapped and fell on the station.Insurgents fighting the U.S.-led occupation have targeted Iraqâs power production facilities and oil export pipelines to undermine postwar reconstruction efforts. Faris al-Bayati, a senior official of the security division of Iraqâs electricity facilities, said an explosion had been heard just before the fire erupted and that the blaze had damaged cables and coils used to store electricity. An adjacent sub-station was shut down after the fire erupted. Oil exports slowed at Iraqâs main southern terminal today after a sabotage attack on a southern pipeline. Posted by: TS(vice girl) 2004-05-10 |
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