2015 Mount Carbon train derailment

2015 West Virginia derailment February 2015 Mount Carbon CSX Derailment File:Mount-Carbon-West-Va-2015-train-derailment-response-1.jpg The accident site on February 18, 2015. 38 8 55.38 N 81 17 34.07 W type:event inline,title 2015 02 16 13:15 EST (18:15 GMT) Mount Carbon, West Virginia United States CSX Huntington Division, New River Subdivision CSX Transportation Derailment Broken Railhttps://www.fra.dot.gov/Elib/Document/15369 ACCIDENT FINDINGS REPORT For Derailment of CSX Transportation, Inc.'s Unit Crude Oil Train K08014 Transporting Crude Oil for Plains All American Mount Carbon, West Virginia Federal Railroad Administration October 9, 2015 October 23, 2015 FRA File #HQ-2015-1009 https://web.archive.org/web/20151117021758/https://www.fra.dot.gov/Elib/Document/15369 November 17, 2015 dead 1 1Fireball fills West Virginia sky after oil train crash BBC News https://www.bbc.com/news/world-us-canada-31498323 February 18, 2015 Large fire, 24 tank cars, One home destroyed, release of 378,000 gallons of crude oil The 2015 Mount Carbon train derailment refers to a derailment in Mount Carbon, West Virginia, on February 16, 2015, which involved a CSX Transportation train hauling 107 tank cars of crude oil from North Dakota to Virginia.March 3, 2015 https://web.archive.org/web/20150303023314/https://abcnews.go.com/US/wireStory/west-virginia-train-derailment-sends-oil-tanker-river-29004983 dead https://abcnews.go.com/US/wireStory/west-virginia-train-derailment-sends-oil-tanker-river-29004983 West Virginia Oil Train Derailment: Fires for Hours, Smoke ABC News Yahoo!-ABC News Network February 17, 2015 Associated Press May 15, 2016 Raby John Mattise Jonathan It resulted in a large oil spill that caught fire with several subsequent large, violent eruptions. The spill, fire, and eruptions destroyed one home, forced the evacuation of hundreds of families and caused the temporary shut down of two nearby water treatment plants. Eventually, 19 railcars carrying crude oil caught fire with each car carrying up to 30,000 gal of crude oil.Fiery train crash forces W Virginia towns to evacuate https://www.bbc.com/news/world-us-canada-31492659 BBC.co.uk BBC. February 17, 2015 February 16, 2015https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2015/feb/16/train-crude-oil-derails-in-west-virginia Huge fire in West Virginia after oil train derails, sending tanker into river the Guardian February 17, 2015 February 17, 2015http://uk.reuters.com/article/usa-train-derailment-csx-idUKL1N0VQ0P820150217 https://web.archive.org/web/20151224061945/http://uk.reuters.com/article/usa-train-derailment-csx-idUKL1N0VQ0P820150217 dead December 24, 2015 UPDATE 5-CSX train hauling North Dakota oil derails, cars ablaze in W. Virginia reuters.com February 17, 2015https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/americas/train-hauling-crude-oil-derails-and-sets-wagons-ablaze-in-west-virginia-10050447.html https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20220501/https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/americas/train-hauling-crude-oil-derails-and-sets-wagons-ablaze-in-west-virginia-10050447.html May 1, 2022 subscription live Train hauling crude oil derails and sets wagons ablaze in West Virginia The Independent February 17, 2015 February 17, 2015http://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2015/02/17/world/csx-oil-train-derails-west-virginia-least-two-cars-fire-towns-evacuated/#.VOK_E9XF_ME CSX oil train derails in West Virginia; at least two cars on fire; towns evacuated The Japan Times February 17, 2015 February 17, 2015http://www.cbc.ca/news/world/west-virginia-oil-train-derails-and-burns-towns-evacuated-1.2959296 West Virginia oil train derails and burns, towns evacuated February 16, 2015 cbc.ca February 17, 2015 Background The train was composed of two GEVO locomotives, a covered hopper car acting as a buffer car, 107 tank cars, and a single trailing end buffer car, with a total of 109 cars.https://data.ntsb.gov/Docket?ProjectID=90737 Tank Car Performance Factual Report (NTSB No.: DCA15FR005) National Transportation Safety Board July 8, 2015 October 23, 2015 The train was carrying volatile Bakken crude, from North Dakota's shale fields at Manitou, North Dakota, to an oil shipping depot in Yorktown, Virginia. All of the cars were DOT-111 tank cars meeting the Casualty Prevention Circular (CPC)-1232 industry standard. These so-called CPC-1232's were introduced by the rail industry in 2011 to increase the safety of carrying flammable liquids. However, several accidents involving the cars have brought their effectiveness into doubt.https://www.wsj.com/articles/train-wrecks-hit-tougher-oil-railcars-1425861371 Wrecks Hit Tougher Oil Railcars Dow Jones & Company, Inc. The Wall Street Journal March 9, 2015 October 23, 2015 Gold, Russell Vieira, Paul Accident At the time of the accident, the train was being led by CREX ES44AC #1349 and CSX Transportation ES40DC #5243 was traveling through Mount Carbon, West Virginia, in an area of town known as Adena Village, across the river from Boomer Bottom.In West Virginia, a collective sigh after the chaos http://powersource.post-gazette.com/news/nation/2015/02/18/In-Boomer-a-collective-sigh-after-the-chaos/stories/201502180150 Pittsburgh Post-Gazette Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. February 19, 2015 https://web.archive.org/web/20150218181648/http://powersource.post-gazette.com/news/nation/2015/02/18/In-Boomer-a-collective-sigh-after-the-chaos/stories/201502180150 February 18, 2015 dead The state was under a winter storm warning and getting heavy snowfall at times, with as much as 5 in in some places. At the time, it was unclear whether the snow contributed to the crash. West Virginia Governor Earl Ray Tomblin's spokesman Chris Stadelman stated that 26 cars left the tracks, 19 of which caught fire. A portion of the train hit and completely destroyed a house, and initial reports stated another rail car ran into the nearby river (it was later found that no cars went into the river), prompting the closure of nearby water treatment plants. Some tank fires were still burning the following morning, but federal investigators were allowed to get within 150 ft of the derailed cars, and Appalachian Power crews were able to repair a line and restore electricity to about 900 customers. During the emergency response, authorities closed the adjacent West Virginia Route 61 in the area of the accident. One lane of the highway was subsequently reopened to most residents, allowing them to return home.http://www.wvnstv.com/story/28120275/derailment-update-mt-carbon-and-adena-village-residents-authorized-to-return-home DERAILMENT UPDATE: Mt. Carbon and Adena Village residents authorized to return home WVNS-TV Feb 23, 2015 October 27, 2015 Fritz, Douglas September 26, 2015 https://web.archive.org/web/20150926002528/http://www.wvnstv.com/story/28120275/derailment-update-mt-carbon-and-adena-village-residents-authorized-to-return-home dead An investigation by federal authorities, using data found on the train's digital data recorders, revealed the train was traveling at 33 mph on at the time of the accident. The legal speed for the section of railroad track where the accident occurred is 50 mph, eliminating illegal speed as a factor in the derailment. Oil spilled into a creek near the accident site, but tests have not found the areas potable water supply to be contaminated by the crude oil that leaked.CSX Oil Train Was Not Speeding in West Virginia Crash, Inquiry Finds https://www.nytimes.com/2015/02/20/us/derailed-oil-train-was-not-speeding-investigators-find.html?mabReward=A1&action=click&pgtype=Homepage&region=CColumn&module=Recommendation&src=rechp&WT.nav=RecEngine&_r=0 The New York Times February 19, 2015 February 20, 2015 Pérez-Peña Richard The weather at the time of the accident was 15 F with 8 in of recent snow. The train was traveling at 33 mph, below the 50 mph on speed limit for the area and a 40 mph on speed restriction imposed by CSX due to cold weather. The second car in the train (the first tanker car behind the buffer car), through the 28th car derailed. Shortly after the derailment occurred, the train went into emergency braking as a result of the brake line coming apart. The engines traveled 636 ft after this. The train crew must have seen the damage behind them and moved the engines and the buffer car an additional 999 ft away from the accident. The second car in the train (the first tanker car behind the buffer car), through the 28th car derailed. The first five of these cars, position 2 to 6 turned over on their sides. The next 18 cars at position 7 to 24 piled up in a tight accordion style, while the last four cars that derailed at position 25 to 28 were somewhat in line. Cars 7 to 25 released their oil. Only two of the cars were punctured, four leaked due to valve or fitting damage. The remaining 13 suffered from thermal tears. These thermal tears were likely the cause of the violent fireball eruptions. The first fireball occurred 25 minutes after the derailment with the 13th and last fireball happening more than ten hours later. The fire burned for four days, finally burning out on February 20. Aftermath One person was treated for potential inhalation according to CSX. As of February 17, the West Virginia National Guard took water samples to determine whether oil seeped into Armstrong Creek and CSX contractors also monitored the air for pollution linked to the fires. Federal railroad and hazardous materials officials are currently probing the accident, and Governor Tomblin declared a state of emergency. Immediately following the accident, the various emergency response agencies organized The Unified Command for the West Virginia Train Derailment (UCWVTD), as a central command. The UCWVTD ordered evacuations of the Mount Carbon areas most at risk from the fires; specifically Adena Village,http://www.montgomery-herald.com/news/update-residents-in-adena-mount-carbon-return-home/article_c2cf16c4-b93e-11e4-b6fb-9bf0bf9f9d0e.html Update #4: Residents in Adena, Mount Carbon return home Montgomery Herald The Montgomery Herald 20 February 2015 14 March 2015 and Boomer Bottom. As the situation improved in the days that followed, most residents were allowed to return home.http://www.statejournal.com/story/28120275/derailment-update-mt-carbon-and-adena-village-residents-authorized-to-return-home DERAILMENT LATEST: Investigation is able to move forward after delays due to the weather The State Journal 23 February 2015 14 March 2015 https://web.archive.org/web/20150328073822/http://www.statejournal.com/story/28120275/derailment-update-mt-carbon-and-adena-village-residents-authorized-to-return-home March 28, 2015 dead mdy-all Investigations The U.S. Federal Railroad Administration was the lead agency in the investigation of the accident. The U.S. National Transportation Safety Board contributed with a detailed analysis of the tank car performance. The cause of the derailment was determined to be a broken rail. Specifically, it was a failure known as a vertical split head (VSH), where the top of the rail is split lengthwise. Specialized rail inspections in this area are performed by CSX's contractor, Sperry Rail Service, using internal rail flaw detector cars. Inspections on December 17, 2014 (61 days before) and January 12, 2015 (35 days before) had revealed a defect at the point where the rail later broke. However, in both cases, the inspector did not perform a detailed inspection by hand as required. The inspector told investigators that he thought the indications from his instruments were simply caused by rough rail surface conditions. It was also revealed that the inspector had been working on the CSX territory for fifteen years but had not been given the enhanced training that a new employee would have been given. References 33em Category:2015 disasters in the United States Category:2015 in West Virginia Category:Accidents and incidents involving CSX Transportation Category:Industrial fires and explosions in the United States Category:Kanawha River Category:Oil spills in the United States Category:Railway accidents in 2015 Category:Railway accidents and incidents in West Virginia Category:Train and rapid transit fires in the United States Category:Transportation in Fayette County, West Virginia Category:Derailments in the United States Category:2015 fires in the United States