LA, USA: Hundreds advised to evacute from town near Camp Minden due to discovery of massive cache of improperly stored explosives

[Emily]

Doyline residents angry about explosive material

http://www.ksla.com/story/20207308/more-details-expected-on-plan-to-move-explosives-at-camp-minden

Weekend evacuation advised for Doyline residents for Camp Minden cleanup
Posted: Nov 28, 2012 10:01 AM PST Updated: Nov 28, 2012 2:46 PM PST
By Carolyn Roy
WEBSTER PARISH, LA (KSLA) -

Residents of Doyline will be asked to get out of town Friday evening and be prepared to stay away through the weekend, while hundreds of thousands of pounds of explosives are moved and secured at Camp Minden.
Additional Links
LSP: Explosives improperly stored at Camp Minden

Col. Mike Edmonson, head of the Louisiana State Police, says that an estimated 1 million pounds of explosives are spread out around the northwest Louisiana site leased by Explo Systems, Inc.

The area is near a local high school, the parish prison and the town of Doyline, which has about 800 residents.

Webster Parish Sheriff Gary Sexton says the improperly stored product will not be touched until Saturday morning...

http://www.kltv.com/story/20223793/officials-strongly-urge-about-1000-doyline-residents-to-evacuate

Doyline residents prepare for evacuation
Posted: Nov 29, 2012 8:42 PM PST Updated: Nov 30, 2012 2:08 PM PST
By Willard Woods
DOYLINE, LA (KSLA) -

Doyline residents are preparing to evacuate Friday while millions of pounds of M6 propellant are removed from Camp Minden over the weekend.
[snip]
Road closures:

According to the LA DOTD:

LA 164 will be closed from its junction with LA 614 on the west end to Amos Cutoff Road on the east end. Amos Cutoff Road is located one mile east of the LA 163/LA 164 intersection in Doyline.

LA 163 will be closed from Boothville Road on the south end to its junction with LA 164 in Doyline.

Detour via LA 3227 to LA 157 to Interstate 20 to US 371.

Explo Systems has a contract to recycle outdated weapons into explosives for use by the mining industry. There was a massive explosion in October at Camp Minden related to their operations:

http://www.flutrackers.com/forum/showthread.php?p=471545

 

[Emily]

Re: LA, USA: Hundreds advised to evacute from town near Camp Minden due to discovery of massive cache of improperly stored explosives

The cache proved to be much larger than expected so the evacuation has been extended.

Washington Post: Authorities feared chain-reaction blast at Louisiana site with 6 million pounds of explosives

KSLA12: Doyline evacuation extended through Thursday

 

[Emily]

Re: LA, USA: Hundreds advised to evacute from town near Camp Minden due to discovery of massive cache of improperly stored explosives

There wasn't enough specialized storage for the unexpected amount of explosives found, so the rest is being handled as best they can.

http://www.thenewsstar.com/viewart/20121207/NEWS01/121207014/Doyline-evacuation-advisory-lifted-?odyssey=nav|head

Doyline evacuation advisory lifted
2:52 PM, Dec 7, 2012
[snip]
State police say about 2.2 million pounds has been removed and stored in safe areas at the site. Work was suspended for the weekend Friday and will resume Monday.

Sgt. James Anderson said the work that took place Friday morning was focused on "segregating" the explosive material - that is separating quantities of the explosive material from each other so that an accidental ignition of one area would not result in a massive fire or explosion...

http://www.columbiatribune.com/news/2012/dec/11/recycler-has-shaky-record/

Recycler has shaky record
Munitions handler cited in past for storage hazards.
Tuesday, December 11, 2012
DOYLINE, La. (AP) ? The explosives recycling company that caused the evacuation of a Louisiana town has come under scrutiny for explosions and its handling of dangerous materials before, and it was so far behind on its rent that the Louisiana National Guard refused to lease it more space.

Explo Systems Inc. was cited for safety violations by the federal government in 2007 for its use of old Army explosives in mining operations in West Virginia, where a blast with "outdated deteriorated military ordnance" injured one worker and exposed others to toxins...