Repost from KMSP Fox9, Minneapolis-St. Paul MN [Update: WISC-TV, Madison, WI, 11/08/15, 08:24:13 AM CST. Latest updates – Associated Press, as of Nov. 9, 2015 4:54 PM EST. – RS]
Tanker train derails near Alma, Wis. along Mississippi River
ALMA, Wis. (KMSP) – A large Burlington Northern tanker train derailed along the Mississippi River approximately two miles north of Alma, Wis. on Saturday morning, prompting several road closures and a temporary voluntary evacuation of the area.
The train was traveling southbound along the Mississippi River when it derailed around 8:50 a.m., according to a division of the Wisconsin Emergency Management team. At least 25 cars went off the tracks, including empty auto racks and tanker cars of denatured alcohol, commonly known as ethanol. Aerial footage of the site shows two of the 25 derailed cars in the water.
Five of the cars released have released ethanol into the river, BNSF Railway said in a statement. No fire, smoke or injuries occurred.
Parts of Highway 37 and 35 were temporarily closed due to the incident, but all roads are now back open. The residents in the affected area who voluntarily evacuated have returned to their homes.
Emergency crews are working with BNSF and the La Crosse hazmat regional team to evaluate the derailment. The Federal Railroad Administration is also investigating the incident.
Severson said there is no danger to the public.
“Everybody responded very quickly and it’s good as it can be. It’s gone very well,” Severson said.
At about 8:45 CST this morning a train carrying freight of all kinds derailed approximately two miles north of Alma, WI. Twenty five cars derailed, including empty auto racks and tanker cars of denatured alcohol, more commonly known as ethanol. There were no fires or injuries associated with the incident. A voluntary evacuation has been lifted and there is no threat to the public. Five of the tanker cars of ethanol have had releases in the Mississippi River. BNSF personnel are working to address the leaks and contain the product. BNSF will work with the EPA and state agencies on the best plan for mitigation and remediation efforts.
We regret any inconvenience the voluntary evacuation may have caused residents. For those who incurred expenses while temporarily evacuated earlier today, BNSF’s Claims Department can be reached at 763-782-3354.
Safety still a primary concern with Valero rail transport plan
By Kevin W. Green, November 07, 2015
The Valero oil refinery operates, Friday, Sept. 25, 2015, in Benicia. (Steve Reczkowski/Daily Republic file)
FAIRFIELD — Most of those who provided formal comments on the revised draft environmental impact report for the Valero crude-by-rail project in Benicia focused on a need for increased safety and possible mitigation measures.
The city of Benicia Planning Department received plenty of input leading up to last week’s deadline for submitting written comments on the revised report.
The proposed project would allow Valero to transport crude oil to its Benicia refinery on two 50-car freight trains daily on Union Pacific tracks that come right through downtown Davis on their way to Benicia. The trains also pass through Dixon, Fairfield and Suisun City.
The rail shipments would replace up to 70,000 barrels per day of crude oil currently transported to the refinery by ship, according to city documents. The Valero refinery would continue to receive crude by pipeline, the city said.
Among the written comments submitted on the revised impact report was an eight-page response from the Sacramento Area Council of Governments. The agency responded on behalf of the 22 cities and six counties in its jurisdiction, including the city of Davis and Yolo County.
“Our earlier letter expressed grave concern that the DEIR concluded that crude oil shipments by rail pose no ‘significant hazard’ to our communities, and we urged the city of Benicia to revise the DEIR to fully inform decision-makers and the public of the potential risks of the project,” SACOG said in its remarks.
The agency’s response included a list of eight measures its board of directors indicated that, at a minimum, should be followed.
Those directives include advance notification to county and city emergency operations offices of all crude oil shipments; limits on storage of crude oil tank cars in urbanized areas of any size; and appropriate security for all shipments.
Other directives outlined need for support, including full-cost funding for training and outfitting emergency response crews; and use of freight cars with electronically controlled pneumatic brakes, rollover protection and other features that mitigate what the agency believes are the risks associated with crude oil shipments.
Finally, the agency calls for the implementation of Positive Train Control to prioritize areas with crude oil shipments.
Solano County Resource Management Director Bill Emlen, a former Davis city manager, noted in his response that he had no specific comment on the revised report, but that the county stands behind its initial remarks about the original draft report.
In those remarks, dated Sept. 8, 2014, Emlen said the county wanted more done to address potential derailments.
The original draft EIR admitted the project “could pose significant hazard to the public or the environment,” but minimized the chances of that happening.
“Although the consequences of such a release are potentially severe, the likelihood of such a release is very low,” the report said.
Emlen disagreed that the accident risks associated with the crude-by-rail proposal are “less than significant” without mitigation.
Valero plans to use a type of tank car designated as CPC-1232 to transport oil between Roseville and Benicia and there will be a 40 mph speed limit through federally designated “high-threat urban areas,” including cities along the route, according to the draft report.
Emlen said it appears Valero’s use of the CPC-1232 tank cars is voluntary, rather than mandatory. He also pointed out that the federal designation for high-threat urban areas extends only 10 miles east of Vallejo and 10 miles west of Sacramento, which leaves out most of Solano County.
Emlen cited a derailment and spill that took place in Virginia with a train using CPC-1232 tank cars and traveling 23 mph.
“Therefore, the use of CPC-1232 tank cars at low speeds does not alone mitigate the potential impact from a train derailment,” he said.
Other cities that submitted a written response on the revised draft included Davis, Albany, Gridley and Briggs. Other counties that responded included Yolo, Placer and Nevada counties.
An original draft EIR was issued for the project in June 2014. Benicia said it issued the revised draft EIR in response to requests made in that original report. The city released the revised document Aug. 31 for a 45-day review period. It later extended the deadline for submitting written comments from Oct. 16 to Oct. 30.
The Benicia Planning Commission also gathered public input on the revised document at a Sept. 29 meeting.
The Valero project involves the installation of a new railcar unloading rack, rail track spurs, pumps, pipeline and associated infrastructure at the refinery, according to a city report. The crude would originate at sites in North America.
Union Pacific Railroad would transport it using existing rail lines to Roseville, and from there to the refinery, the city said.
Minor train derailment in east Saint John leaves some uneasy
Several cars carrying crude oil slipped off the tracks but there was no spill
CBC News, Nov 06, 2015 6:17 PM AT
A minor train derailment in east Saint John on Thursday has some people concerned about what could happen should a major accident occur. (Timothy Pennell/CBC)
NB Southern Railway was still on scene in east Saint John on Friday, making repairs after a minor derailment.
On Thursday, three cars loaded with crude oil slipped off the tracks around 10:20 a.m.
While there was no spill, it did have some thinking about the potential for damage.
A piece of broken track at the site of a minor train derailment in east Saint John. (Timothy Pennell/CBC)
Area resident Chris Likourgiotus said, “I think it would scare anybody having any kind of leak close to any residential or business anywhere in Canada.
“I think this is one reason why it might not be a bad idea to have Canada East pipeline.”
For some businesses next to the tracks, news of the derailment was disconcerting.
Todd Fougere owns a graphics and signs business.
“You know, you do see them time to time come through and put some new boards under and that sort of thing. But again, I don’t know the rules and regulations so you just hope somebody is looking out,” he said.
Environmentalist Sharon Murphy says she’s concerned about crude being stored in the middle of the city. (CBC)
However, environmentalist Sharon Murphy says trust shouldn’t have to be earned, especially since there was no consultation over storing so much crude oil in the middle of the city.
“Heaven forbid there’s an explosion, when that happens the citizens don’t have a clue what to do,” she said.
“We are working and living directly beside this very dangerous area in the city, and never were we consulted.”
NB Southern Railway says it will conduct its own investigation into the cause of the derailment.
Because this isn’t a federal line, the Transportation Safety Board will not be conducting an investigation.
The province says the severity of the derailment does not warrant its own investigation.
Repost from CBC News [Editor: Note the industry terminology: “the TSB blamed the derailment on “truck hunting,” a term used by people in the industry to refer to the side-to-side movement of wheel sets on a particular freight car. Excessive truck hunting can cause the wheel to lift, potentially leading to a derailment, the TSB said.” – RS]
No one injured in July 2014 incident, only a small amount of aviation fuel lost, report says
CBC News, Nov 05, 2015 1:24 PM ET
The Transportation Safety Board of Canada released this aerial photo of the derailment site after the July 2014 incident. (Transportation Safety Board of Canada)
A wheel issue caused the derailment of a 26-car CN Rail train near Brockville last summer, according to a report by the Transportation Safety Board of Canada.
Two loaded automobile cars, five cars carrying carbon powder, and 13 cars containing aviation fuel residue were among those that jumped the tracks on July 10, 2014, near Lyn Road and Highway 401, about 115 kilometres south of Ottawa.
In its report, the TSB blamed the derailment on “truck hunting,” a term used by people in the industry to refer to the side-to-side movement of wheel sets on a particular freight car.
Excessive truck hunting can cause the wheel to lift, potentially leading to a derailment, the TSB said.
In the case of the Brockville derailment, the TSB blamed a combination of factors: the speed of the train, the type of car where the wheel issue manifested itself — a 24-metre-long “centrebeam bulkhead flat car” — and the worn condition of the side bearings.
The train was traveling about 100 km/h at the time of the accident, the report said.
‘Small amount’ of fuel lost
The derailment stirred memories of the tragic Lac-Mégantic rail disaster of 2013, in which 47 people died after a train carrying crude oil derailed in the small Quebec community.
Because the fuel cars on the CN train that derailed near Brockville were mostly empty, only a “small amount of product” was lost, the TSB said Thursday. Still, the damage to the fuel cars was consistent with what had been observed in previous accidents, the safety board said.
“The potential for catastrophic environmental impacts and loss of life remains, thereby reinforcing the need for improved tank car design standards,” said the board.
Since the accident, CN has upgraded all of the flat cars in their fleet similar to the one where the wheel issue occurred and has introduced new speed restrictions on those cars, the TSB said.
