They drilled holes 55 feet deep and 12 5/8 inches in diameter in a chevron pattern (like you’d lay out cookies on a cookie sheet). They took samples from each hole at various depths and sent them to the Assay lab for the contents of each to be analyzed. After that, blastmaster, Charlie “Red,” would come and analyze the hole and label it with the amount of ANFO to use. ANFO is a mixture of Ammonium Nitrate and Fuel Oil. It is the same stuff that was used in the Oklahoma City bombing. To put the scale into perspective, about 1500 pounds were used in that event, and at the mine, there was, on average 1800 pounds in each of the approximately 400 holes that would be blasted in a day. That means that about 480 times the amount used in the bombing was used in a day in the mine. (Arstein) Then the ANFO was put into each hole, with a detonator and a booster at the bottom and middle of each hole. Finally, the “stemming” would be put on top, to seal the hole and to put as much of the energy as it could into the surrounding
They drilled holes 55 feet deep and 12 5/8 inches in diameter in a chevron pattern (like you’d lay out cookies on a cookie sheet). They took samples from each hole at various depths and sent them to the Assay lab for the contents of each to be analyzed. After that, blastmaster, Charlie “Red,” would come and analyze the hole and label it with the amount of ANFO to use. ANFO is a mixture of Ammonium Nitrate and Fuel Oil. It is the same stuff that was used in the Oklahoma City bombing. To put the scale into perspective, about 1500 pounds were used in that event, and at the mine, there was, on average 1800 pounds in each of the approximately 400 holes that would be blasted in a day. That means that about 480 times the amount used in the bombing was used in a day in the mine. (Arstein) Then the ANFO was put into each hole, with a detonator and a booster at the bottom and middle of each hole. Finally, the “stemming” would be put on top, to seal the hole and to put as much of the energy as it could into the surrounding