Expert opinion 05/02/2006 03:12 PM

Explosives Expert Steps on Third

Rail of Controlled Demolition, Steps Back
Quickly

In their first unguarded comments on the collapse of the World Trade Center, several authorities
on explosives and building demolitions have commented on the striking similarity of the
collapses to a controlled demolition. The initial comments of Van Romero, Vice President for
Research and Economic Development at New Mexico Institute of Mining and Technology and a
major authority on the effects of explosions on buildings, are especially striking. His first
remarks are quite unequivocal in stating his opinion that explosives were used. Romero's
prompt but half-hearted retraction (""I'm very upset about that," he said. "I'm not trying to say
anything did or didn't happen.") following his very clear initial statement raises more questions
than it answers. The vastly different tone and rapid order of his two articles suggests that he
was told in no uncertain terms to retract his initial remarks.

ALBUQUERQUE JOURNAL' ~ "'EXPLOSIVES PLANTED IN TOWERS,'

NEW MEXICO TECH EXPERT SAYS."
By Olivier Uyttebrouck Journal Staff Writer

Televised images of the attacks on the World Trade Center suggest that explosives
devices caused the collapse of both towers, a New Mexico Tech explosion expert said
Tuesday. The collapse of the buildings appears "too methodical" to be a chance result
of airplanes colliding with the structures, said Van Romero, vice president for research
at New Mexico Institute of Mining and Technology.

"My opinion is, based on the videotapes, that after the airplanes hit the World
Trade Center there were some explosive devices inside the buildings that caused
the towers to collapse," Romero said.

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Expert opinion 05/02/2006 03:12 PM

Romero is a former director of the Energetic Materials Research and Testing Center at
Tech, which studies explosive materials and the effects of explosions on buildings,
aircraft and other structures.
Romero said the collapse of the structures resembled those of controlled implosions
used to demolish old structures. "It would be difficult for something from the
plane to trigger an event like that," Romero said in a phone interview from
Washington, D.C.
______________________________________________________________
From the original article* published in the Albuquerque Journal on
9/11/01.

For an excellent discussion of Romero's initial remarks, and his later ambiguous "recantation" of
his initial assertions, see this outstanding article by John Flaherty and Jared Israel (their link to
the original article in the Albuquerque Journal no longer works). Some excerpts from the original
Albuquerque Journal piece:

************
More unfiltered comments from another kind of expert:
a New York City Fire Department Chief
Interview with NBC reporter Pat Dawson on the day of 9/11, soon after the Towers' collapses,
describing reports from the NYFD of secondary explosions and explosive devices in the Twin
Towers.
Audio link

Partial Transcript of Interview

"Just moments ago I spoke to the Chief of Safety for the New York City Fire Department, who
was obviously one of the first people here after the two planes were crashed into the side, we
assume, of the World Trade Center towers, which used to be behind me over there. Chief
Albert Terry told me that he was here just literally five or ten minutes after the events that took
place this morning, that is the first crash.

He said that at one point he had roughly ten alarms, that would equate to roughly 200 to 225
New York City firefighters who were in the building, this was after the crash, trying to rescue
civilians who were in there. Now earlier this morning on the Today Show we spoke to the
director of the World Trade Center. He said at that hour of the morning you could have
upwards of 10,000 people in each of those towers. That would be 20,000 people total in each
tower (sic).

The Chief of Safety of the Fire Department of New York City told me that shortly after 9:00
he had roughly ten alarms, roughly 200 men, trying to effect rescues of some of those civilians
who were in there, and that basically he received word of a secondary device, that is
another bomb, going off. He tried to get his men out as quickly as he could, but he said that
there was another explosion which took place.

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Expert opinion 05/02/2006 03:12 PM

And then an hour after the first hit here, the first crash, that took place, he said there
was another explosion that took place in one of the towers here. So obviously, according
to his theory, he thinks that there were actually devices that were planted in the building.
One of the secondary devices, he thinks, that [detonated] after the initial impact he thinks may
have been on the plane that crashed into one of the towers. The second device, he thinks, he
speculates, was probably planted in the building.

So that’s what we have been told by Albert Terry, who is the Chief of Safety for the New
York City Fire Department. He told me that just moments ago."
---- Pat Dawson

************
Thomas Eagar, self-appointed expert
extraordinaire

How did an MIT Professor of Materials Engineering with a doctorate in Metallurgy and no
professional experience in structural engineering or related fields become the media's most
visible "authority" on building collapses? And for that matter how did he become the primary
science consultant for the NOVA documentary on the World Trade Center? (Annotated
transcript of Eagar's NOVA interview from 9-11 Research)

**********************
*Full text of the original version of the
Albuquerque Journal article:

'ALBUQUERQUE JOURNAL' ~ "'EXPLOSIVES PLANTED

IN TOWERS,' NEW MEXICO TECH EXPERT SAYS." By

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Expert opinion 05/02/2006 03:12 PM

IN TOWERS,' NEW MEXICO TECH EXPERT SAYS." By

Olivier Uyttebrouck Journal Staff Writer

Televised images of the attacks on the World Trade Center

suggest that explosives devices caused the collapse of both
towers, a New Mexico Tech explosion expert said Tuesday.

The collapse of the buildings appears "too methodical" to be a

chance result of airplanes colliding with the structures, said
Van Romero, vice president for research at New Mexico
Institute of Mining and Technology.

"My opinion is, based on the videotapes, that after the

airplanes hit the World Trade Center there were some
explosive devices inside the buildings that caused the
towers to collapse," Romero said.

Romero is a former director of the Energetic Materials

Research and Testing Center at Tech, which studies explosive
materials and the effects of explosions on buildings, aircraft
and other structures.

Romero said he based his opinion on video aired on national

television broadcasts.

Romero said the collapse of the structures resembled those of

controlled implosions used to demolish old structures.

"It would be difficult for something from the plane to

trigger an event like that," Romero said in a phone interview
from Washington, D.C.

Romero said he and another Tech administrator were on a

Washington-area subway when an airplane struck the
Pentagon.

He said he and Denny Peterson, vice president for

administration and finance, were en route to an office building
near the Pentagon to discuss defense-funded research
programs at Tech.

If explosions did cause the towers to collapse, the detonations

could have been caused by a small amount of explosive, he
said.

"It could have been a relatively small amount of explosives

placed in strategic points," Romero said. The explosives
likely would have been put in more than two points in each
of the towers, he said.

The detonation of bombs within the towers is consistent with a

common terrorist strategy, Romero said.

"One of the things terrorist events are noted for is a

diversionary attack and secondary device," Romero said.

Attackers detonate an initial, diversionary explosion that

attracts emergency personnel to the scene, then detonate a
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Expert opinion 05/02/2006 03:12 PM

attracts emergency personnel to the scene, then detonate a

second explosion, he said.

Romero said that if his scenario is correct, the diversionary

attack would have been the collision of the planes into the
towers.

Tech President Dan Lopez said Tuesday that Tech had not been
asked to take part in the investigation into the attacks. Tech
often assists in forensic investigations into terrorist attacks,
often by setting off similar explosions and studying the effects.

(C) 2001, 'Albuquerque Journal,' Reprinted for Fair Use Only

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