Oil Train Safety Megathread. Updated December 23, 2024

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78. Fiery North Dakota derailment was latest crash to involve weak tank cars the NTSB wants replaced

U.S. News
Fiery North Dakota derailment was latest crash to involve weak tank cars the NTSB wants replaced

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FILE - This photo provided by Doug Zink shows smoke filling the sky after a train derailment, July 5, 2024, near Carrington, N.D. The fiery North Dakota derailment that burned for days early last month was the latest train crash to involve the flawed tank cars that the National Transportation Safety Board has been trying to get off the tracks for decades, according to a preliminary report released Thursday, Aug. 1. (Doug Zink via AP, File)

By JOSH FUNK
Updated 7:06 PM EST, August 1, 2024

The fiery North Dakota derailment that burned for days early last month was the latest train crash to involve the flawed tank cars that the National Transportation Safety Board has been trying to get off the tracks for decades.

The NTSB said in a preliminary report released Thursday that the July 5 train crash near the small town of Bordulac, North Dakota, caused an estimated $3.6 million in damage to the CPKC railroad tracks and equipment. But the agency didn’t offer many hints about what caused the derailment that happened in the early morning hours that day. ... CPKC railroad officials are prohibited from answering questions about the derailment while NTSB is investigating.

The NTSB highlighted the fact that some of the 17 tank cars carrying hazardous materials that derailed were DOT-111 tank cars that have demonstrated time and again that they are prone to rupturing in a train crash. The agency has been recommending eliminating the use of those cars for hazardous materials at least since the 1990s because of their history of problems, and Congress did mandate that they be replaced for hauling flammable liquids by 2029. But even then they could continue to be used for other hazardous materials.

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