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Truck carrying airbag propellant explodes; prompts government inquiry

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BY KEVIN SAWYER – Last week, a cargo truck exploded in Texas that was carrying the propellant used in the manufacture of vehicle airbags by the Takata Corporation. Once again, the controversy surrounding the safety of airbags has been raised.

The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) is hoping to look into the explosion. The truck was coming from its factory in Mexico and exploded on US 277 in Del Rio, Texas. One person was killed and four were injured. The truck was carrying 14,000 canisters of ammonium nitrate which is the chemical used in airbag propulsion technology.

The explosion was so gigantic that it created a huge crater and the blast had blown out windows in houses and buildings over two miles away. One woman who was killed could only be finally identified by her dental records. Takata has long been under attack for the way it handles and transports the product.

The NTSB will ask for Texas law enforcement help on what happened at the crash site. First investigative indications by the NTSB was that the truck had been properly loaded and that the chemical cylinders were properly loaded and secured.

Charles Ditlow, the executive director for a car safety watchdog group called The Center for Auto Safety, based in Washington, DC, said that, “This incident shows that there is a need to get completely away from ammonium nitrate. Takata’s choice of ammonium nitrate was one of the biggest engineering mistakes in automotive history. Why are they still using it?”

The airbag recall is for 70 million Takata airbags and they all were scheduled to be swapped out by the end of 2019 but with the recent explosion and raging controversy, it could put millions of people at risk if the recall gets delayed for much longer. The problem with the ammonium nitrate being used as a propellant is that temperature swings can make the chemical highly unstable. This has led the Takata air bag inflators to blow out with excessive force that has killed more than a few drivers and passengers in the past.

The investigation of the tragic accident and its aftermath, as well as the ongoing controversy and investigation into Takata and their use of ammonium nitrate, will continue and, hopefully, all involved will come to a safe and reasonable conclusion.

PHOTO CREDIT: Pixabay