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Tag: train derailment

  • Train Derailment Injures Dozens in Arkansas

    Disaster struck on Thursday as a freight train collided with a passenger train in Washington County, Arkansas. The accident has left dozens injured and has prompted an investigation by the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB).

    According to a report from Little Rock NBC affiliate KARK, five people were critically injured in the crash and at least 20 more were injured in some way. There were reportedly 44 people on-board the passenger train at the time of the crash. Several of those injured were reported to have been train crew members.

    The NTSB announced yesterday that it has launched an investigation into the incident. An NTSB “go-team” of railroad investigators has been sent to the site of the crash. The team is expected to be at the scene of the accident for five to seven days to collect perishable evidence.

    The KARK report quotes police as stating the passenger train left Springdale, Arkansas early Thursday morning and later slipped off its tracks. The freight train was reportedly sent for aid, but ended up crashing into the passenger train.

    According to the NTSB the passenger train, made up of one locomotive and four cars, stalled in what is called “dark territory” – a section of track controlled by a railroad’s operations control center rather than signals. The cause of the stall has not yet been determined.

    An NTSB spokesperson went on to state that the rescue train dispatched to help collided head-on with the passenger train’s lead engine. Both trains were derailed as a result of the crash, though no fuel was released and there were no fires. Both of the trains had forward-facing video recorders that should help investigators determine the cause of the accident. The official number of passengers injured in the crash has not yet been determined.

    The next NTSB media briefing has been scheduled for Friday at 5 pm EDT in Springdale.

  • Colorado Derailment Causes Minor Oil Leak

    A 100-car Pacific Union train derailed west of La Salle, Colo. on Friday at around 8:00 am. The train had been loaded in Windsor with Niobrara crude oil that was bound for New York.

    Union Pacific Railroad sent crews to the derailment site where they spent much of the afternoon working to clean up and contain the mess.

    No injuries were reported as a result of the incident.

    Union Pacific spokesman Mark Davis said that road traffic was not be affected by the derailment. Davis expects any inconveniences to rail traffic to be minor.

    “It’s on our line that doesn’t see much use,” said Davis. “It’s off the main line that goes through Greeley. It’s not impacting operations that greatly.”

    Of the six cars that went off the tracks only one leaked oil.

    There was initial concern about an environmental issue, but fortunately the spill had been safely contained in a ditch off the roadway. The nearby South Platte River was not threatened by the oil leak.

    Though Davis told reporters that he couldn’t say how much oil was being leaked, an Environmental Protection Agency official said that the car was losing oil at a rate of 20 gallons to 50 gallons per minute.

    The car was carrying a total of 28,000 gallons of oil.

    The crew managed to contain the leak by vacuuming the contents directly from the train car. A second vacuum recovered oil that had been spilled.

    Craig Myers, the on-sight coordinator for the EPA, told the Denver Post that the Union Pacific Railroad company got lucky in that the damage caused by the derailment was “minimal”.

    Colorado Democratic Sen. Mark Udall commented about the derailment and spill. The senator feels strongly that the industry needs better regulations when it comes to the handling and transportation of crude oil.

    Post by Protect Youngstown.

    The New York Times reported that the Department of Transportation is working on updating safety standards for train cars, many of which have been in service since the 1960s.

    Image via CBS Denver, Facebook

  • Bart Derailment: Service Stalled As Repairs Continue

    A train derailment at the Concord, Calif. BART station on Friday continued to hold up services into the weekend.

    According to a statement by BART, the train had just gone out of service when at around 6:30 pm, some wheels went off the track. The San Jose Mercury News reported that witnesses described a “strong electrical odor” as lingering in the area.

    There were no passengers on the train during the derailment and the train operator suffered no injuries.

    It is not yet known what caused the train to go off the track, but Adam Goermar, who witnessed the derailment, described the train as “going too fast as it went through the station” and bouncing, sending sparks flying before derailing a short while later.

    “It was like something out of a movie,” said Goermar. “I caught my breath.”

    After responding to the chaotic scene on Friday night, workers continued to make repairs to the derailed train, the track, and the electric third rail into the next day. The location is to remain closed as the repairs process will likely continue through Saturday evening.

    Persons were advised that all service past Pleasant Hill on the Pittsburg/Bay Point line had been canceled.

    To cope with the inconvenience, BART says that riders planning to travel into San Francisco or Oakland should catch trains departing the Pleasant Hill station on Saturday. There is also a shuttle train which will be operating between Pittsburg/Bay Point and North Concord. There is a bus service available for commuters needing to get to eastern destinations on the Pittsburg-Bay Point line.

    BART spokeswoman Alicia Trost said that there is no planned time or date for the closed Concord station to resume service.

    This is the first major derailment at the Concord station since March of 2011 when a ten car train went off the track. There were sixty-five passengers on board during that incident and three riders reported minor back injuries.

    Image via YouTube

  • Train Derailment: Why Didn’t Pan Am Warn Public?

    When a train carrying toxic materials experiences a derailment near a population, it’s generally safe to assume that the railway company responsible for the train will notify local officials immediately. This is what Jodi Ross assumed, however she was wrong.

    The Westford, Mass. town manager is now speaking out about the recent derailment near her town and the failure of Pan Am Railways to notify officials or members of the public.

    On Wednesday at 11:00 pm, there were train cars “teetering on the edge of the North Main Street overpass”. The mayor was not aware that there was even an issue until Fire Chief Joe Targ happened upon the scene the next morning at about 9:30 am.

    By 2:30 pm on Thursday, crews were able to successfully pull the cars back onto the tracks and avoid any potential problems.

    Even so Mayor Ross admits being “dismayed” at the lack of communication from Pan Am, especially with contents inside certain train cars being explosive in nature. There is also the matter of the the derailment occurring right above the city’s major water supply. A hazardous materials leak could have been disastrous.

    Pan Am Railways had a reason as to why they didn’t feel contacting any local public officials was necessary: They weren’t legally obligated as there was no real danger.

    Vice President Cynthia Scarano says that if the derailment had caused safety concerns, “we would have gotten on the phone right away.”

    Scarano says that the company was not trying to purposely upset Ross by not contacting her office about the derailment.

    As for the train derailment itself, Scarano says that the matter is still under investigation.

    It has been more than three decades since a major train derailment in nearly the exact location resulted in a massive evacuation due to public safety concerns.

    It appears at present that despite Pan Am’s lack of communication with the Westford officials, there doesn’t seem to be a danger of history repeating itself.

    Image via Youtube

  • Train Derailment in Canada Causes Fire, Homes Evacuated

    Fire continues to burn Wednesday after a train carrying oil derailed in New Brunswick, Canada Tuesday.

    The train consisted of 122 cars and four locomotives. Only eight were transporting crude oil and propane from Canada, which were destined for an Irving Oil refinery in Saint John, New Brunswick.

    Although there is no official explanation to why it occurred, Canada’s Transportation Safety Board Manager Daniel Holbrook reported that faulty brakes and a broken axil might have caused the incident.

    “Preliminary reports were that the train was proceeding, and while proceeding experienced what we call is an undesired brake application,’’ he said.

    Fifteen cars and a locomotive just so happened to derail. The freight cars then caught on fire, causing residents within a 1.24-mile radius to evacuate their homes.

    There are no major environmental damages occurred but the fire continues to spread.

    This derailment is one out of many other similar events that have increased major concerns as far as the transportation of oil via train.

    Communities and rail officials located near rail lines are the most concerned about the danger it induces. (image)

    According to a report by CBS News:

    “In July, 47 people were killed in Lac-Megantic, Quebec, when a train carrying crude oil derailed. Another oil train from North Dakota derailed and exploded in Alabama in November, causing no deaths but releasing an estimated 749,000 gallons of oil from 26 tanker cars, adding to concerns about the safety of such shipments.”

    Fortunately, there were no reported deaths or injuries in this case, but people are still on the fence about the issue.

    A news report on the train derailment that happened in Quebec last July.

    Image via Youtube, Megan Shockley

  • Train Derailment: Engineer Reportedly Asleep At The Controls

    The train derailment that took four lives and injured more than 60 people over the holiday weekend may have been the result of the engineer falling asleep at the controls, authorities say.

    William Rockefeller says he “zoned out” and was jerked to attention when a whistle went off, alerting him that the train was going much too fast. The Metro-North train was at around 82 mph when it came to a 30 mph-curve; according to the black box recovered from the wreckage, Rockefeller didn’t apply the brakes until just five seconds before the crash.

    “He was just somehow inattentive, and as soon as he realized what was happening, he jammed on the brakes,” one source said.

    The train jumped the tracks, throwing several passengers from the cars. Incredibly, because there were so many injured, authorities said they were forced to ask everyone to assist those who were more badly wounded. The traumatized passengers stepped up to the task.

    Rockefeller has reportedly been cooperative with authorities and drugs and alcohol are not thought to be a factor. His cell phone has been confiscated, however, so that police can check the records to see if he might have been texting or otherwise engaged while on duty.

    Image: YouTube

  • Metro-North Train Derailment Possibly Caused By Fast Speeds

    On Sunday, December 1st, 2013, a New York Metro-North commuter train unexpectedly derailed in The Bronx, killing four passengers and leaving many others injured (according to a CNN exclusive). New data compiled by the NTSB (National Transportation Safety Board) has concluded that excessive speed may have been a factor in the cause of Sunday’s derailment.

    According to a new report from CNN, the NTSB has finalized a preliminary report that fast speeds may have been a possible factor in the Metro-North train’s derailment this past Sunday. Event recorders taken from the locomotive of the train (as well as another car) communicated to the NTSB that the train was traveling 82 mph as it entered the 30 mph designated curve.

    William Rockefeller, the engineer aboard the Metro-North train, stated to investigators that the breaks were applied; however, the train did not slow down. According to MSN, Earl Weener of the NTSB stated that the breaks were applied “very late in the game” for a train going as it fast as it was. MSN also reports that Rockefeller’s cellphone is also being examined to see if the engineer was distracted during the time of the derailment.

    Weener was also asked by various reporters if faulty breaks or human error were the cause of Sunday’s derailment. His response to that inquiry was “The answer is, at this point in time, we can’t tell.”

    MSN also states that the NTSB has been urging railroads for quite some time to “install technology that can stop wrecks caused by excessive speed or other problems.” In 2008, Congress required many railroad companies (including Metro-North) to install these facilities by 2015.

    According to CNN, New York Governor Andrew Cuomo exclaimed in a statement that the information from the event recorders “makes clear that, as we suspected, extreme speed was a central cause of this crash.” Cuomo also stated that “when the investigation concludes, we will make sure that any responsible parties are held accountable. My thoughts and prayers continue to be with the families of the victims of yesterday’s crash.”

    [Image source: USA Today Video (0:05)]

  • Amtrak Derailment: Train Goes Off Track in South Carolina

    This week of Thanksgiving 2013, many commuters will turn to public transportation to travel home to see their loved ones — one more time before the holiday season. With the upcoming wintry storms hitting various parts of the United States, many people may be seeking transportation alternatives more and more. Unfortunately, one incident involving public transportation made a turn for the worst as an Amtrak train derailed early Monday morning.

    According to Yahoo News, an Amtrak Crescent train (20) headed to New York City from New Orleans unexpectedly derailed in South Carolina on Monday. There were 207 passengers and 11 crew members on board the New York-bound train.

    In a statement e-mailed to the Associate Press by Amtrak, seven of the nine cars went off the track but stayed upright; however, there is “no immediate word” as to the cause of the derailment. In a statement released by Amtrak, heat, light, and other services were promptly restored on the train to passengers after the incident.

    The Associate Press also received a telephone call from Carrie Lambert, a passenger on board the derailed train, explaining her experience throughout this terrible ordeal:

    “The car felt like it was about to flip over. I was holding on to my brother for dear life. Bags went everywhere. It was crazy. Really scary.”

    Yahoo News states that there were no serious injuries from the derailment; however, four of the passengers on board the train encountered minor injuries and were transported to a nearby hospital.

    Amtrak also stated that passengers aboard the derailed train can request a refund or a voucher for future travel. The responsible parties for investigating the cause of the derailment were also mentioned in Amtrak’s statement:

    “The cause of the incident will be investigated by Amtrak and Norfolk Southern, which owns, controls, maintains and dispatches this portion of the Crescent’s route, and the Federal Railroad Administration.”

    In a report by FOX News, Robin Chapman of Norfolk Southern stated “One of two parallel tracks in the area was open, and other trains were moving through Monday morning. Normal track speed in that area is 79 mph. Conductors were slowing down other passenger trains to ‘walking speed’ in the area around the accident.”

    [Image source: Wikimedia Commons]

  • Paris Train Derailment: At Least 7 Dead In Chaotic Scene

    A train has derailed in Paris, leaving 7 people dead and several more injured, authorities say.

    The passenger train was carrying 385 people and was head to Limoges when two of the cars derailed and took others along with it. The death toll will more than likely rise as officials scour the scene, and authorities have not confirmed whether or not passengers are still trapped on the train. Onlookers called the scene “chaotic” and said there were unattended children about. An investigation is underway as to what caused the derailment; the crash occurred at 5:15 p.m. Paris time on Friday.

    The crash comes one week after Canada suffered a horrific train derailment of their own; Lac-Megantic’s town center was destroyed after a train carrying several cars worth of crude oil rolled downhill on its own and lost control, crashing with a fiery explosion into the downtown area. Officials there believe the death toll may reach as high as 50 as they continue a search for bodies.

    This is a developing story; we will update this article as soon as more information is available.