Nord Corea, colossale esplosione seguita da nuvola 'a forma di fungo'

Non ci sono ancora notizie precise su quanto successo tre giorni fa in Corea del Nord: secondo alcune fonti la colossale esplosione verificatasi quasi al confine con la Cina, in una zona fortemente militarizzata, avrebbe prodotto un enorme cratere e sarebbe stata seguita dall'apparizione di una nuvola a forma di fungo del diametro di circa 3-4 chilometri.



Per ora non è stato possibile appurare la reale natura e portata dell'esplosione, definita comunque "molto più forte" di quella che in aprile ha distrutto la cittadina di Ryongchon; per ora non si esclude del tutto la possibilità di una esplosione nucleare, anche accidentale:

A huge explosion rocked an area in North Korea near the border with China three days ago and appeared to be much bigger than a train blast that killed 170 people in April, South Korea's Yonhap news agency reported today.



"There were rumours that the explosion was much bigger than the one at Ryongchon train station and the United States is showing a big interest, as the blast was seen from satellites," Yonhap quoted an unnamed source in Beijing as saying.



The cause had yet to be determined but the source said Washington was not ruling out the possibility that the blast may be linked to a nuclear test.



Yonhap reported that a mushroom cloud up to 4 kilometres in diameter was spotted after the blast in remote Yanggang province in the far northeast.



The New York Times reported in its editions today that the Bush administration had received recent intelligence reports that some experts believe could indicate North Korea is preparing to conduct its first nuclear weapons test explosion.



South Korean government officials were not immediately available for comment. Thursday, the day of the blast, was the 56th anniversary of North Korea's founding. The reclusive communist state often stages extravaganzas and events to mark key dates.

(Toronto Star)