Oil Barge Explodes on Staten Island - February 21, 2003

Courtesy of the Associated Press: Smoke and flames rise, in this view (see picture top left) from television, after an explosion rocked an oil refinery on the edge of Staten Island, in New York, sending black smoke and flames hundreds of feet into the air, Friday, Feb. 21, 2003.(AP Photo/courtesy WABC-TV)

At about 10:00 a.m. EST an oil refinery barge exploded and caught on fire. The explosion, which could be heard several miles away, occurred at the edge of Port Mobile, near the Outerbridge Crossing that links the island to Woodbridge, N.J., in the southwestern part of Staten Island.

 The burning barge's smoke plume could be seen from a far distance. The RU COOLroom was able to see the smoke plume from the rooftop of the Institute of Marine and Coastal Sciences building.

From the image to the left, the RU COOLroom scientists were able to see how much the smoke plume has spread.

Trying to see a better view of the smoke plume, the scientists notice that the smoke plume was much larger than they expected.

Checking with our partners in NBC, the picture to the left shows how black the smoke plume was (image courtesy of MSNBC TV).

After noticing the smoke plume from outside, the COOLroom scientists checked the radar images to see if anything was picked up. They saw five radar images, approximately 10 minutes apart. The first one is prior to the appearance of the plume on radar, then the following 4 show the development and progression of the smoke plume moving due east.

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