What’s the scope of a local planning commission authority? When that commission is considering construction project approval at an oil refinery to enable five oil trains (each a mile long) arrive per week at that refinery, does the local planning commission have the authority to consider issues outside on-site safety and…
Today the Federal Railway Administration announced a Rule focused on trains that accidentally “roll away”. The Rule is meant to fix an issue which occurred on July 6, 2013, in Lac-Mégantic, Canada, when an unattended train “rolled away,” crashed into the town – and because the train was carrying Bakken…
Dangerous cargo’s, including crude oil, are being transported by rail around the U.S. This last week an oil train derailed in a remote part of Eastern Montana, and while it fortunately didn’t go boom it could have done so. A few months ago another oil train derailed near Galena Illinois, and…
According to the FBI “Environmental Extremists assert criminal actions are necessary to end perceived destruction or exploitation of our natural resources and ecosystems.” The warning goes on to list signs of extremist activity including posting information to social networks or making bombs. Retrieved from Chemical Facility Security News, DeSmogBlog Retrieved…
It appears there’s been two oil train derailments in Montana over the last couple days. Several of the rail cars tipped over, with a few in each train leaking crude oil, but fortunately no explosions this time. Maybe it means future oil train derailments won’t cause explosions and therefore the…
Last week “scores of concerned Baltimore residents” protested the dangers of exploding oil trains. Protesters note that oil trains follow a winding route through Baltimore that puts large swaths of Baltimore within the danger zone. In my neck of the woods the Phillips 66 refinery in San Luis Obispo is seeking to start…
A couple days ago, an Amtrak train crashed in Philadelphia killing 8 people and injuring dozens more. While the NHTSA hasn’t finished its investigation, thus learning the root cause, it’s known the train was traveling at 106 miles/hr on a track segment with a 50 mile/hr speed limit. Therefore the immediate…
Yesterday, a BNSF trail carrying 103 crude oil cars derailed on tracks bordering the Mississippi River in a remote part of Illinois near Galena. Today there’s some further information which clears up some unknowns about the incident. It’s now known the fire was more extensive than thought yesterday, involving more…
Mike Burley, THONLINE Another week another bomb train, it seems. Last week it was West Virginia, this week Galena Illinois. This time a 105 car train, 103 of which were crude oil tankers, derailed in a remote section of Illinois just off the Mississippi River. According to a news…
On the scene video on the night of the oil train explosion in Lac Megantic, Ontario
