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| China-Japan-Koreas |
| Report: Thousands Dead or Injured in N.Korea Rail Blast |
| 2004-04-22 |
| EFL Up to 3,000 people were killed or injured when two trains loaded with fuel collided and exploded at a North Korean station Thursday, hours after leader Kim Jong-il had passed through, South Korea’s YTN television said. I thought Kimmie traveled by choo-choo because it’s safer. YTN quoted witnesses in its report while South Korea’s Yonhap news agency, which spoke of widespread destruction, also said there were thousands of casualties. Neither Yonhap nor YTN gave a breakdown of deaths and injuries. Yonhap quoted sources in the Chinese city of Dandong that borders the North as saying the explosion occurred around 1 p.m. -- nine hours after Kim’s special train was reported to have passed on its way back to Pyongyang after a visit to China. "The station was destroyed as if hit by a bombardment and debris flew high into the sky," Yonhap said, quoting the unidentified Chinese sources. Bombardment, now there’s an idea. The sources said cargo trains carrying gasoline and liquefied petroleum gas collided at Ryonchon station 30 miles south of the border. Yonhap also quoted a senior Defense Ministry official as saying the South’s military -- which eavesdrops on North Korea -- had heard about the blast through "intelligence channels directed against the North." There was no immediate suggestion the blast was anything other than an accident. But the explosion came after Kim met China’s new leadership during a rare foreign visit to discuss the North’s nuclear weapons plans and tentative economic reforms. North Korea appears to have cut international telephone lines to the area to prevent information about the explosion getting out, Yonhap added. The North appears to have declared a type of emergency in the area. Did not know they had many international phone lines. Yonhap said the sources said people in Dandong were concerned their friends or relatives could have been caught up on the explosion. Traders from both sides criss-cross the border area. A railway worker on the Chinese side of the Dandong border crossing told Reuters he had not heard of a blast and had seen no signs of any emergency effort under way. "The closest station to here in North Korea is in Sinuiju (on the border), and I would have heard it. But I didn’t hear anything," So maybe it did not happen. North Korea’s official media broke their silence on Kim’s three-day trip to Beijing Thursday -- strongly suggesting Kim was safely back in Pyongyang -- but did not mention the explosion. Kim does not travel by air when he does venture outside North Korea. Residents in Pyongyang said by telephone there was nothing unusual in the capital. North Korean television was broadcasting military songs and music -- standard evening fare. The best way to ensure citizens to not regret being too poor to have a teevee. |
| Posted by:JAB |
| #16 There were rumors the fuel was a |
| Posted by: Zenster 2004-04-22 8:12:37 PM |
| #15 Has Radio North Korea on the short-wave started to play funeral music yet, or are they still talking about Kim's praise for the inept collective rice-patty? Anybody got access to a shortwave? Does someone stream it on the web? |
| Posted by: Anonymous4052 2004-04-22 7:50:47 PM |
| #14 There clearly was a large explosion there of some sort And. . . ?????? |
| Posted by: Anonymous4052 2004-04-22 7:47:41 PM |
| #13 Kim does travel by train, which to me makes me wonder how hes managed to live this long, since trains are hardly easy to hide and take a long time to get to their destination and they cant really change their route. Once you confirm that the little root-weavil is on the train, its time to call in the JDAM's. |
| Posted by: Frank Martin 2004-04-22 7:37:42 PM |
| #12 Latest version of rooters story includes this little nugget: "In Washington, a U.S. official speaking on condition of anonymity said: "There clearly was a large explosion there of some sort." So, something happened. Odd that Axis of Evil rail service is so unreliable. |
| Posted by: JAB 2004-04-22 7:36:24 PM |
| #11 "Thousands dead"? Countries downwind had better be checking their Geiger counters and readying their disaster plans in case this is a radioactive "type of emergency" |
| Posted by: Tresho 2004-04-22 5:47:12 PM |
| #10 raptor - know any sites where we could find that? |
| Posted by: Barbara Skolaut 2004-04-22 4:47:16 PM |
| #9 Iran must have sold them the plans for that train bomb. |
| Posted by: Zenster 2004-04-22 2:39:51 PM |
| #8 That big a bang should show-up on satilight photos. |
| Posted by: raptor 2004-04-22 2:20:05 PM |
| #7 Angie, the article says liquified petroleum gas. (The radio report also said LNG.) Think super MOAB, and pity the poor souls nearby. Probably Kim had them empty the tracks when his train was on the line, and this is the result of hurrying to get everything back on schedule. Assuming the stories are accurate, of course... |
| Posted by: James 2004-04-22 1:59:47 PM |
| #6 The North appears to have declared a type of emergency in the area. A type of emergency : We sorta kinda got a problem here. There are sorta lots of people dead, and we can't tell anyone, so we have a type of emergency, which we can't say is an emergency, but it is a kinda sorta emergency of a particular type. |
| Posted by: Anonymous4052 2004-04-22 1:52:44 PM |
| #5 Cobra - Either that or North Korean Watches have a problem. Synchronize your watches is a dicey proposition. |
| Posted by: Anonymous4052 2004-04-22 1:49:35 PM |
| #4 fix: 9 hours earlier, doesn't sound like an attempt on his life to me |
| Posted by: CobraCommander 2004-04-22 1:46:09 PM |
| #3 Foxnews is reporting that Kim Jong was passing near 2 hours earlier and it was a possible assination. Also heard news a car bomb were also mentioned. |
| Posted by: CobraCommander 2004-04-22 1:43:31 PM |
| #2 How often do trains collide killing thousands? Happened in Iran a while back, too. I think it was just hundreds there. This kind of thing always makes my spidey senses tingle, though they may need recalibrating. |
| Posted by: Angie Schultz 2004-04-22 1:42:58 PM |
| #1 Ouch. Since this is a fuel shipment, it's gotta HURT! It's 30 miles from the border, which is a looooong way for sound to reach. |
| Posted by: Ptah 2004-04-22 1:16:09 PM |