Staten Island Oil Refinery Fire
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TV ClubHouse: Archives: 2003 February: Staten Island Oil Refinery Fire

Kaili

Friday, February 21, 2003 - 07:27 am EditMoveDeleteIP
Anyone in New York area know what's going on? The news people on CNN don't seem to know much (except that gas prices have already gone up?)

Goddessatlaw

Friday, February 21, 2003 - 07:37 am EditMoveDeleteIP
Looks like a propane barge explosion right off Staten Island - they don't seem to think there are enormous environmental concerns (at least not so far). No idea why the explosion occurred.

Crossfire

Friday, February 21, 2003 - 07:42 am EditMoveDeleteIP
Wow, that is a huge fire. They had a shot of a cityscape with a giant plume of smoke towering over the city, and I must say, the visuals kind of shook me. Very erie.

Kaili

Friday, February 21, 2003 - 07:43 am EditMoveDeleteIP
I'm surprised- people were saying it looks like the water is on fire. It sounds like no known inuries, but don't people work in those buildings (or on the barge)?

Kaili

Friday, February 21, 2003 - 07:45 am EditMoveDeleteIP
Yes, the skyline is... a weird visual. Icky.

That is some thick, nasty smoke. I would hate to be smelling that. Now they are saying it may just burn itself out.

Goddessatlaw

Friday, February 21, 2003 - 07:46 am EditMoveDeleteIP
I feel dreadful for the people in New York. Apparently the explosion was heard and felt 30 miles away, and had to absolutely rattle the nerves of anyone within range. Understandably, some are calling into news stations saying the immediate thought was another terrorist attack. The fire is at the Mobil Port Refinery dock.

Kaili

Friday, February 21, 2003 - 07:52 am EditMoveDeleteIP
That's what I was thinking, GAL. How awful to feel an explosion rattle your house after having gone through so much so recently (and especially in light of all the recent warnings and raised threat level). I bet people are really on edge.

Cyn

Friday, February 21, 2003 - 08:22 am EditMoveDeleteIP
ny1 update

Also check the Headline thread - i added some stuff that hasn't been updated on their home page yet, but was said while on air.

Cyn

Friday, February 21, 2003 - 08:40 am EditMoveDeleteIP
Local reporting now states that there are two people missing, and normally 6 or 7 men work on the barge that exploded. This was told by a phone interview with one of the worker's that was on the barge. Three Coast Guard cutters are there. It is being reported that the material being unloaded was unleaded gasoline, they think.

Pcakes2

Friday, February 21, 2003 - 08:58 am EditMoveDeleteIP
I got a call at work this morning just after the explosion from my best friend..we grew up about 5 minutes from there.

Ginger1218

Friday, February 21, 2003 - 10:24 am EditMoveDeleteIP
My friend who lives 5 minutes from there told me that her house felt like a huge bomb had hit. It shook her whole house, and of course nerves being frayed, imagined the worst. But, from what I understand, it is contained, and I believe the fire is out. They feel that it was an accident, and not terrorism. (Thank G*d)
I did not feel anything - I am in work and I work on the 44th floor, so I am very glad not to have felt anything.

Bastable

Friday, February 21, 2003 - 11:12 am EditMoveDeleteIP
It's very far away from Manhattan. From here, it just looks like a dark rain cloud in the mid-sky. If they didn't know about the fire, a person on the ground would never think anything was going on. I didn't feel any explosion either (on the 4th floor). No one that I know thought for a second it was terrorism, but it hasn't stopped all the TV stations from pre-empting shows with tedious helicopter shots of the conflagration.

Those images of the smoke above the city are indeed eerie, but unless you're way up high, you don't see that in the city. Just another day in the fire department.

Bastable

Friday, February 21, 2003 - 11:13 am EditMoveDeleteIP
Again, I didn't feel the blast in Manhattan, and neither did Ginger (you're in Manhattan, right?). We hear banging garbage trucks and slamming flatbeds all day long. Even if I heard one, I don't think I'd recognize a real explosion from a sanitation department hiccup.

Cyn

Friday, February 21, 2003 - 11:27 am EditMoveDeleteIP
I didn't hear or feel or see anything until I saw Kalii's post and then checked the news. I live on Manhattan.

Sadiesmom

Friday, February 21, 2003 - 11:34 am EditMoveDeleteIP
I didn't hear anyuthing in NJ.

Ginger1218

Friday, February 21, 2003 - 12:54 pm EditMoveDeleteIP
No, I didn't see or feel anything either, yes I am in Manhattan (midtown).

But in Staten Island my friends said for a minute it was scary because their whole house shook and they did not know what was happening. And, of course their first thought was terrorism. But they are cops, so they found out right away that it was an accident. You know the media has to blow it all out of proportion to make people more nervous.

Ginger1218

Friday, February 21, 2003 - 12:55 pm EditMoveDeleteIP
Sadiesmom, I didn't know you lived in Jersey. If I knew, we could have gotten together and gone to some republican/conservative get togethers. LOL Only kidding. :)

Bastable

Friday, February 21, 2003 - 03:49 pm EditMoveDeleteIP
I did hear that the Dow Jones plunged 100 points once the first footage hit TV. Once they realized it was just an accident, it leveled off.

How sad--is our economy THAT based on a collective hunch?

Crossfire

Friday, February 21, 2003 - 03:53 pm EditMoveDeleteIP
Yep, I was watching that, you can see it on the charts. I suppose they were particularly antsy because it involved oil as well.

Cyn

Friday, February 21, 2003 - 04:07 pm EditMoveDeleteIP
nevermind - it wasn't nice and had absolutely nothing to do with anyone who thinks here.