Explosion on Cat III

[Toussaint_Allier]

BREAKING NEWS

UNSETTLING NEWS is starting to reach us that an explosion has occurred on Cat III. Initial reports suggest no-one has been killed but many have been injured.

The explosion was centred around the offices of Material Acquisitions - the mining arm of Quafe - in the largest of their colonies on the planet near the Northern pole.

The metallic planet has been home to many prosperous mining colonies and renowned for its investment from the Caldari mega Nugoeihuvi Corporation. For this reason, Cat has often been seen as the jewel in the economic crown of Eustron and, as such, a terrorist incident has not been ruled out.

The explosions occurred at the shift change between the day and night office staff when the buildings were at their most empty which, thankfully, reduced the casualty count. At this point, it is unclear how many were injured and we are awaiting an official statement.

UPDATE - JULIEN CALLE - head of the first responders in Cat III - has spoken to the press in the last few minutes. Whilst an accident has not been ruled out, “due to the location of the epicentres of the explosions and a calling card left at the scene which was resistant to the EM and thermal bombs we believe were planted, it is highly likely that this was a terrorist incident.”

He went on to describe the calling card as ‘a black metallic alloy with a golden flame embossed onto it’ and suggested it would require ‘great wealth as only held by few individuals but of a level negligible for most capsuleers’. He refused to comment on whether he believed it was due to the recent announcement that Nugoeihuvi has awarded Quafe the licence to Starsi in both the State and Empire or their working together as a part of the PKN Interstellar Consortium.

NOH and Quafe were approached for comment but had not responded at time of publication.

[Angus_Thermopollye]

Hi, I’m Angus. I’m the guy that runs the Boom Boom Room that orbits Cat III, and I’m the CEO of Club Zer0.

I’ve been a longtime resident of this system, even briefly retiring on Cat III for a short time. I know the people on the ground, and Club Zer0 employs tens of thousands on both the planet and the station. Based on the intelligence our office has received, some of the facts here have been either been blurred or outright ignored.

First of all, Cat III is a temperate planet, not a “metallic” one. The Nugoeihuvi Corporation invested heavily in this planet and strip mined most of it’s natural resources. Material Acquisitions removed the majority of their industry and took it elsewhere long ago, leaving the majority of citizens on the planet bankrupt. Only the ruling elite kept their wealth.

Our intelligence contacts on the surface of the planet have determined that the “official” report is highly flawed. Club Zer0 keeps an eye on all incoming and outgoing traffic in the orbit of Cat III and we can absolutely assure you that no capsuleer activity was logged in our transponder units or in the local fluid router archives.

In short, this reeks of cover ups and lies. False propaganda at best, maybe.

[Ange_des_Larmes]

What do you think they could be covering up? And who would be covering it up?

[Diana_Kim]

@Toussaint_Allier

terrorist incident

Terror incident.
Terrorist is an operative.
And, really, you use EM charge to shut down some electronics, not to cause panic.

If you want to terrorize someone, make it loud, make it visible, make booms everywhere. Use of EM charges says you’re dealing with someone more professional than a simple terrorist; someone with more serious goals than just inciting fear.

[Kalodote_Lafisques]

Never heard about “Cyberterrorism”?

[Angus_Thermopollye]

@Ange_des_Larmes, I’m unsure, to be honest.

The explosion of the Material Acquisitions plant did occur but again, there was no direct evidence of any capsuleer involvement.

The Nugoeihuvi Corporation has been making great strides to lock down the system, based on intelligence that has been relayed to my security team. To me, this smacks of gross overreach directed by the Caldari State to place a strategic forward operating presence near Gallente’s biggest market hub, Dodixie.

The Cat system has long been a destination for those Caldari that have left the State. In addition, it’s also home to many ex-pats from all Empires and various Null Sov organizations. It is, as the initial report suggests, a highly sought after system due to its strategic value. It is not hard to imagine that a plant may easily have made their way onto the planet. Especially someone that is a loyalist to the State.

Based on the spin and the tactics employed, I would be willing to bet my pod that this is a Caldari State led operation and not a terrorist act. This whole incident smacks of subterfuge.

[Ange_des_Larmes]

Whilst I have some… concerns as to why it took you 10 days to respond to something that surely would require swifter attention, I also believe you make a valid point.

The State has been rather aggressive towards the Federation as of late - look at Lai Dai’s invasion of Intaki for one!

When individuals like @Diana_Kim publicly advocate for the State to raid Federation space and do not get admonished by the megas, one can only presune that such aggressive - some might even say expansionist - philosophies are de rigueur in the tea houses of New Caldari.

But Diana does make a valid point - the use of EM does make this look very professional. But why it an office?

Perhaps the upcoming Gallente elections will bring about a stronger response from the Federation.

[Deitra_Vess]

Upcoming gallente elections, em bomb used in an “attack” on the offices owned by a subsidiary of a gallente company heavily invested in by a Caldari Mega…

Does one of the candidates have some business dealings they wish to hide?

[Angus_Thermopollye]

@Ange_des_Larmes, because it was not my concern nor did it involve my business interests. I will operate regardless of who controls what space.

As a CEO and Caldari ex-pat, official Gallente organizations in particular haven’t been very welcoming, but the people of Cat III welcomed my people and I with open arms. We lived among them for almost five years. Now we employ a full third of the planet’s population in our facilities on the ground and in orbit, with a diverse mix from every major empire.

I could really care less about the politics of it all. My concern is only for the inhabitants of Cat III. It doesn’t need to become the center of yet another conflict that does little more than to slaughter innocent people and appease the egos of wannabe demi-gods.

Additionally, I didn’t respond for ten days because I don’t like baseless allegations and I wanted to look into it myself.

[Khadria_Ulutek]

@Angus Thermopollye, I don’t think I completely agree. Caldari State as the perp in this incident may seem plausable to quite a few, but I’m not convinced. It’s possible for sure, but what would be their message? What stake do they really have out here in Cat?

I’m an ex-pat, like you; I hold no love for the State… But I’m not convinced that this is their doing.

@Diana Kim , A terror incident? As I mentioned in the above paragraph, where’s the message? For this to be a terrorist action, there has to be a message, a political agenda, a grief or beef with whatever establishment is the target of said terrorists ire. So what’s the message? A calling card with a “Black metallic alloy with a golden flame embossed onto it”?

Sorry, nothing there. As a journalist, you should know what a terrorist act is. " The systematic use of terror, especially as a means of coercion." Who is being coerced?

No manifesto, no statement of intent, no message claiming political allegiance. Just a picture of a candle flame… Nothing more, nothing less.

With no political message whatsoever, there can be no terrorist action. This either has to be…

1. A workplace “incident”
2. A random act of violence.
3. A personal attack.
4. An entity looking to sow the seeds of chaos.

My contacts at Lai Dai, Caldari Navy, Corp Police Force, House of Records, Minedrill, Perkone, and Topdown, have turned up absolutely nothing, and I burned through almost all my favors for this. Why? because I recently moved into the Cat system, and questioned the viability of staying here.

Maybe those Corps, and my contacts “aren’t in the know, or kept in the dark”, but if this was a Caldari State push into CAT, one of my contacts would know about it, and Angus, your contacts would probably know that as fact about two minutes sooner than mine.

Nah, I’d put my chips on #3 or # 4.

With option 3 being a distant second.

[Angus_Thermopollye]

@Khadria_Ulutek, I agree. My instincts based on the intelligence gathered lead me to believe this is someone looking to sow discord.

It would be nice if @Toussaint_Allier would provide the source of their information or the intent of the fraud and misdirection they are perpetuating.

[Ange_des_Larmes]

I have to say, this is a rather interesting parallel to the incident on Octanneve V where it is alleged that a capsuleer altered the weather patterns of an entire planet to harm a few people in one archipelago. Apparently, that is more believable to some than someone setting off an explosive device near an office of an organisation that I am sure some would not like to see in Gallente space.

Does it say more about the current state of the Federation that they would rather believe fantastical claims aimed at a Nation loyalist more than possible anti-Caldari action within their borders? Has the value of the Caldaris’ ISK gotten so high for the Federation’s coffers that they’ll turn a blind eye to any extra-national action they might take?

[Angus_Thermopollye]

I believe it would be prudent to get more information before formulating any theory. Again, @Toussaint_Allier would do well to shed light on where they got the information, so that a proper investigation from an objective party can investigate the issue.

[Diana_Kim]

@Khadria_Ulutek

@Diana Kim , A terror incident? As I mentioned in the above paragraph, where’s the message? For this to be a terrorist action, there has to be a message, a political agenda, a grief or beef with whatever establishment is the target of said terrorists ire. So what’s the message? A calling card with a “Black metallic alloy with a golden flame embossed onto it”?

Sorry, nothing there. As a journalist, you should know what a terrorist act is. " The systematic use of terror, especially as a means of coercion." Who is being coerced?

No manifesto, no statement of intent, no message claiming political allegiance. Just a picture of a candle flame… Nothing more, nothing less.

I am not a journalist, ma’am.
I am a soldier.
For me a terror action is an action with purpose of instilling fear in the enemy without any other apparent purpose, not coerce them to do anything in particular.

Terrorism is just a form of warfare.
It’s just… poor man’s war. Without clean objectives and goals, terrorists just destroy what they can and hope that enemy will be scared - which, of course rarely work (maybe only against gallente?) So, that’s practical terrorism.

And trying to coerc someone… for political goals?.. That’s just SO GALLENTE!!

[Angus_Thermopollye]

I would suggest before one allows their nationalist passions to lead them down a road of misdirection, please examine the facts that we know first:

• The narrative that @Toussaint_Allier has supplied doesn’t seem to match the actual events that occurred. Many of their allegations don’t even make sense. The basic research on the planet is wrong.

• This is the first entry on the IGS by @Toussaint_Allier. There are no bonafides to back up where this capsuleer got their information, their sources, or the ability to verify any of the information. This reeks of possible “bad actor” manipulation.

• @Toussaint_Allier has not graced us with their presence to answer any of these questions nor have they provided actual proof other than hearsay that DOES NOT AGREE with what actually happened on the ground.

• Neither Nugoeihuvi Corporation nor Material Acquisitions have acknowledged the incident, and have firmly turned away any inquiries, at least from private organizations.

Jumping to conclusions before we know the facts seems a bit premature, as I said before.

[Angus_Thermopollye]