2 rail cars overturn in La., residents evacuated
Associated Press Posted: 2008-05-17 12:19:10 LAFAYETTE, La. (AP) - Six rail cars have derailed in southern Louisiana, with two cars leaking hydrochloric acid and forcing police to evacuate thousands of residents within a 1-mile of the accident.
Lafayette Corporal Paul Mouton says the two cars began leaking after the 2:20 a.m. Saturday derailment. Authorities are asking residents to leave. Mouton says local firefighters and state police are on the scene.
Mouton says the area is mostly businesses, but there’s also a few apartment complexes and a nursing home. He estimates thousands will have to be evacuated.
Acadian Ambulance official Clay Henry says he is transferring 20 Our Lake of the Oaks nursing home residents to a hospital. He says two of the residents have what he describes as “very minor injuries.”
so whats involved in cleaning something like this up?? wonder how much it’ll be costing the railroad company!
Methinks BNSF is asking itself : “Why did we buy this from SP/UP again?” (The line was in really sad shape when BNSF got it in 1997)
Pictures seem to indicate there is a real good chance of a wheel/switch point failure. At least it appears to have happened at low speed. The fun will be determining cause, which in turn often decides who pays. (I vote for sharp wheel flange[X-)][X-)][;)])
Answer: Lots of litmus paper and some locally available base material to neutralize what may have spilled and start landfarming the contaminated material until pH neutral. Some BNSF environmental engineers I know just got their weekend plans changed.
One television station reported that the cars were leaking “hydraulic fluid” and accompanied the story on their website with a picture of a high-speed electric passenger train. So much for accuracy in media.
As to whether or not BNSF has any regrets over obtaining this piece of track from SP/UP, I seriously doubt it. It carries heavy chemical traffic that pays very well compared to other cargo. An occasional derailment is part of the cost of running a railroad and their accounting department accrues for it in advance.
John Timm