WEBVTT

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(electronic music)

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- [Narrator] What you are
seeing is actual footage

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of a tragic incident that
could have been avoided.

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In 2004, a stray mortar
landed in some dry grass

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near a major military base
outside Kirkuk, in Northern Iraq.

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The explosion ignited the dry grass

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and started a fire in the field,

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that spread quickly to
the nearby bomb dump.

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Intense heat of that fire
began setting off munitions.

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And as you can see,

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the results were catastrophic
for US forces there in Kirkuk.

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That isn't the first time
a large scale explosion

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has resulted from negligent
safety practices, either.

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According to the San Antonio
Express news, back in 1963,

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a massive explosion shook the
city of San Anotonio, Texas,

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breaking windows up to 30 miles away.

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Official accounts indicate that
123,000 pounds of explosives

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accidentally detonated at a
fortified bunker on Medina Base

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due to a fire that had broken out.

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The resulting explosion left a crater

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that was 25 feet deep
and 60 feet in diameter.

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Weapons safety is a necessary component

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in order to mitigate or even
eliminate events like these.

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A weapons safety manager's main purpose

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is to advise the commander
on munitions risk reduction

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and asset preservation.

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If the WSM's guidance had been followed,

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these unfortunate events
may have been avoided.

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So what does the weapons safety program

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look like at your Wing?

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(intense drumming music)