Hazmat Code

Trains Magazine General Discussion
1

Good day,

I was in Fostoria, Ohio one day earlier this week; lots of great action as usual. Of particular interest were two eastbound trains, back-to-back about 10 minutes apart. Both were unit tank cars with buffer cars between the engines and tank cars. All the Hazmat codes on both were 1987. I did a Google search but wasn’t able to come up with info. Any idea what 1987 is and where they could have been headed?

Thanks,

Ross R.

2

ID 1987 - Alcohol N. O. S.

ID 1987 - Denatured Alcohol

3

Just checked the Hazmat list and 1987 is Alcohol (Beverage) and is has a red placard with white lettering which represents Flammable Liquid.

4

Human or motor fuel, the flame burning blue.

5

Unit ethanol train, I’m betting (aka. the bomb train). Going to one of the terminals in the east (North Jersey and Albany are two of the major ones).

6

I learned to recognize the ethanol cars by the 1987 placards, only to find out that 1987 was a fairly general specification (oxymoron!), and that there’s actually a better number for the ethanol placards (which I haven’t memorized yet!).

7

Here’s the reference I carry in my truck.. It’s free. I’ve downloaded it to my home computer, my laptop, and the new computer at the fire station, where there’s a paper copy sitting right next to it…

The 2008 edition is the latest. They come out with a revised version every 4 years. Still, there aren’t a lot of changes from edition to edition, so if you know someone in a fire department or any other agency that keeps the ERG on hand, you might be able to talk them out of an older edition, if they’ve kept any around and don’t otherwise need them.

Keeps the kids busy in the back seat on road trips - kind of like license plate bingo, only with “methyl ethyl awful” instead of states and numbers…

Keep in mind that the ERG isn’t the final, all knowing authority. It’s used by emergency responders to manage the first few minutes of a hazmat incident. It’s definitely not an MSDS. It gives you a cross reference between the UN number and the possible names, and tells you how far away you (and everybody else) should be if there’s a spill.

8

Thanks, Larry! 1170.

9

1987 is alcohols, n.o.s. This includes denatured ethanol. It is denatured specifically to keep people from drinking it. The number for non denatured ethanol is 1170. The number for alcoholic beverages is 3065.