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In soviet South Africa we lose that many people in everyday taxi accidents.
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The Quebec Oil Train Crash
- Thread starter LazyLion
- Start date
As compared to say soviet USA?
Things break, mistakes happen. Welcome to the world of entropy.
killadoob
Honorary Master
Yup that sounded like the guy who issues the statement for the train LOL. Funniest interview i have ever seen hahah.
LazyLion
King of de Jungle
Traumatized survivors of an oil train derailment that wiped out the heart of a small town braced for more bad news as inspectors were finally cleared to enter the charred site's epicenter and look for remains late Monday, more than two days after the disaster that killed at least 13 people. A total of 50 were missing and the death toll was sure to rise.
Quebec provincial police Sgt. Benoit Richard said eight more bodies had been found in the wreckage after firefighters doused the flames and cooled down some of the oil tankers that were in danger of exploding. Five bodies were found over the weekend, and police would not say where the newly discovered ones were, for fear of upsetting families.
All but one of the train's 73 tanker cars were carrying oil when they came loose early Saturday, sped downhill nearly seven miles (11 kilometers) into the town of Lac-Megantic, near the Maine border, and derailed. At least five of the cars exploded.
Maude Verrault, a waitress at downtown's Musi-Cafe, was outside smoking when she spotted the blazing train barreling toward her.
"I've never seen a train moving so fast in my life, and I saw flames ... Then someone screamed 'the train is going to derail!' and that's when I ran," Verrault said. She said she felt the heat scorch her back as she ran from the explosion, but was too terrified to look back.
The rail tankers involved in the derailment are known as DOT-111 and have a history of puncturing during accidents, the lead Transportation Safety Board investigator told The Associated Press in a telephone interview late Monday.
TSB investigator Donald Ross said Canada's TSB has gone on record saying that it would like to see improvements on these tankers, though he acknowledged it's too early to say whether a different or modified tanker would have avoided this weekend's tragedy.
The DOT-111 is a staple of the American freight rail fleet. But its flaws have been noted as far back as a 1991 safety study. Among other things, its steel shell is too thin to resist puncture in accidents, which almost guarantees the car will tear open in an accident, potentially spilling cargo that could catch fire, explode or contaminate the environment.
"It's too early to tell. There's a lot of factors involved," Ross said. "There's a lot of energy here. The train came down on a fairly significant grade for 6.8 miles (10.9 kilometers) before it came into the town and did all the destruction it did." He said the train was moving at 63 mph (101 kph) when it derailed.
The Saturday blasts destroyed about 30 buildings, including a public library and Musi-Cafe, a popular bar that was filled with revelers, and forced about a third of the town's 6000 residents from their homes. Much of the area where the bar once stood was burned to the ground. Burned-out car frames dotted the landscape.
The derailment raised questions about the safety of Canada's growing practice of transporting oil by train, and was sure to bolster arguments that a proposed oil pipeline running from Canada across the U.S. - one that Canadian officials badly want - would be safer.
Raymond Lafontaine, whose son and two daughters-in-law were among the missing, said he was angry with what appeared to be lack of safety regulations.
"We always wait until there's a big accident to change things," he said. "Well, today we've had a big accident, it's one of the biggest ever in Canada."
The fires sparked by the exploding tanks burned for two days, impeding investigators from reaching some of the "hot spots," including the area near the destroyed Musi-Cafe.
"It's a zone that we've started to work on and we'll work on it more in the hours to come," Richard said.
The area remained part of a criminal investigation and investigators were exploring all options, including the possibility that someone intentionally tampered with the train, Richard said.
Canadian Transport Minister Denis Lebel said the train was inspected the day before the accident in Montreal and no deficiencies were found. Lebel defended his government against criticisms it had cut back on rail safety measures. He said the rail remains a safe way to transport goods the vast majority of the time.
Earlier Monday, Queen Elizabeth II expressed deep sadness over the disaster, saying in a message through the federal government that the loss of life "has shocked us all." Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper toured the town Sunday and compared it to a war zone.
The train's owners said they believed brake failure was to blame. "Somehow those brakes were released, and that's what is going to be investigated," Joe McGonigle, Montreal, Maine & Atlantic Railway's vice president of marketing, told The Associated Press on Sunday.
Officials were also looking at a locomotive blaze on the same train a few hours before the derailment. Ross also said the locomotive's black box has been recovered, and investigators were looking into whether the air brakes or the hand break malfunctioned.
Meanwhile, crews were working to contain 100,000 liters (27,000 gallons) of light crude that spilled from the tankers and made its way into nearby waterways. There were fears it could flow into the St. Lawrence River all the way to Quebec City.
Quebec's Environment Ministry Spokesman Eric Cardinal said officials remained hopeful they could contain more than 85 per cent of the spill.
Local fire chief Denis Lauzon said firefighters in a nearby community were called to a locomotive blaze on the same train a few hours before the derailment. Lauzon said he could not provide additional details about that fire since it was in another jurisdiction. McGonigle confirmed that a fire was reported after the first engineer secured the train and went to a local hotel.
"We know that one of our employees from our engineering department showed up at the same time to assist the fire department. Exactly what they did is being investigated so the engineer wasn't the last man to touch that train, we know that, but we're not sure what happened," McGonigle said.
McGonigle said there was no reason to suspect any criminal or terror-related activity.
The growing number of trains transporting crude oil in Canada and the United States had raised concerns of a major disaster. Harper, who has been pushing the Obama administration to approve the controversial Keystone XL oil pipeline from Canada to the U.S. Gulf Coast, has said railroad transit is more "environmentally challenging" than pipelines.
The train's oil was being transported from North Dakota's Bakken oil region to a refinery in New Brunswick on Canada's East Coast. Because of limited pipeline capacity in the Bakken region and in Canada, oil producers are increasingly using railroads to transport oil to refineries.
The Canadian Railway Association recently estimated that as many as 140,000 carloads of crude oil will be shipped on Canada's tracks this year - up from 500 carloads in 2009. The Quebec disaster is the fourth freight train accident in Canada under investigation involving crude oil shipments since the beginning of the year.
Wayde Schafer, a North Dakota spokesman for the Sierra Club, has predicted such a catastrophe ever since crude began leaving the North Dakota by rail in 2008.
"I think anybody could have foreseen this," said Schafer. "It seemed like a disaster waiting to happen and it happened."
Source : Sapa-AP /gm
Date : 09 Jul 2013 05:58
Quebec provincial police Sgt. Benoit Richard said eight more bodies had been found in the wreckage after firefighters doused the flames and cooled down some of the oil tankers that were in danger of exploding. Five bodies were found over the weekend, and police would not say where the newly discovered ones were, for fear of upsetting families.
All but one of the train's 73 tanker cars were carrying oil when they came loose early Saturday, sped downhill nearly seven miles (11 kilometers) into the town of Lac-Megantic, near the Maine border, and derailed. At least five of the cars exploded.
Maude Verrault, a waitress at downtown's Musi-Cafe, was outside smoking when she spotted the blazing train barreling toward her.
"I've never seen a train moving so fast in my life, and I saw flames ... Then someone screamed 'the train is going to derail!' and that's when I ran," Verrault said. She said she felt the heat scorch her back as she ran from the explosion, but was too terrified to look back.
The rail tankers involved in the derailment are known as DOT-111 and have a history of puncturing during accidents, the lead Transportation Safety Board investigator told The Associated Press in a telephone interview late Monday.
TSB investigator Donald Ross said Canada's TSB has gone on record saying that it would like to see improvements on these tankers, though he acknowledged it's too early to say whether a different or modified tanker would have avoided this weekend's tragedy.
The DOT-111 is a staple of the American freight rail fleet. But its flaws have been noted as far back as a 1991 safety study. Among other things, its steel shell is too thin to resist puncture in accidents, which almost guarantees the car will tear open in an accident, potentially spilling cargo that could catch fire, explode or contaminate the environment.
"It's too early to tell. There's a lot of factors involved," Ross said. "There's a lot of energy here. The train came down on a fairly significant grade for 6.8 miles (10.9 kilometers) before it came into the town and did all the destruction it did." He said the train was moving at 63 mph (101 kph) when it derailed.
The Saturday blasts destroyed about 30 buildings, including a public library and Musi-Cafe, a popular bar that was filled with revelers, and forced about a third of the town's 6000 residents from their homes. Much of the area where the bar once stood was burned to the ground. Burned-out car frames dotted the landscape.
The derailment raised questions about the safety of Canada's growing practice of transporting oil by train, and was sure to bolster arguments that a proposed oil pipeline running from Canada across the U.S. - one that Canadian officials badly want - would be safer.
Raymond Lafontaine, whose son and two daughters-in-law were among the missing, said he was angry with what appeared to be lack of safety regulations.
"We always wait until there's a big accident to change things," he said. "Well, today we've had a big accident, it's one of the biggest ever in Canada."
The fires sparked by the exploding tanks burned for two days, impeding investigators from reaching some of the "hot spots," including the area near the destroyed Musi-Cafe.
"It's a zone that we've started to work on and we'll work on it more in the hours to come," Richard said.
The area remained part of a criminal investigation and investigators were exploring all options, including the possibility that someone intentionally tampered with the train, Richard said.
Canadian Transport Minister Denis Lebel said the train was inspected the day before the accident in Montreal and no deficiencies were found. Lebel defended his government against criticisms it had cut back on rail safety measures. He said the rail remains a safe way to transport goods the vast majority of the time.
Earlier Monday, Queen Elizabeth II expressed deep sadness over the disaster, saying in a message through the federal government that the loss of life "has shocked us all." Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper toured the town Sunday and compared it to a war zone.
The train's owners said they believed brake failure was to blame. "Somehow those brakes were released, and that's what is going to be investigated," Joe McGonigle, Montreal, Maine & Atlantic Railway's vice president of marketing, told The Associated Press on Sunday.
Officials were also looking at a locomotive blaze on the same train a few hours before the derailment. Ross also said the locomotive's black box has been recovered, and investigators were looking into whether the air brakes or the hand break malfunctioned.
Meanwhile, crews were working to contain 100,000 liters (27,000 gallons) of light crude that spilled from the tankers and made its way into nearby waterways. There were fears it could flow into the St. Lawrence River all the way to Quebec City.
Quebec's Environment Ministry Spokesman Eric Cardinal said officials remained hopeful they could contain more than 85 per cent of the spill.
Local fire chief Denis Lauzon said firefighters in a nearby community were called to a locomotive blaze on the same train a few hours before the derailment. Lauzon said he could not provide additional details about that fire since it was in another jurisdiction. McGonigle confirmed that a fire was reported after the first engineer secured the train and went to a local hotel.
"We know that one of our employees from our engineering department showed up at the same time to assist the fire department. Exactly what they did is being investigated so the engineer wasn't the last man to touch that train, we know that, but we're not sure what happened," McGonigle said.
McGonigle said there was no reason to suspect any criminal or terror-related activity.
The growing number of trains transporting crude oil in Canada and the United States had raised concerns of a major disaster. Harper, who has been pushing the Obama administration to approve the controversial Keystone XL oil pipeline from Canada to the U.S. Gulf Coast, has said railroad transit is more "environmentally challenging" than pipelines.
The train's oil was being transported from North Dakota's Bakken oil region to a refinery in New Brunswick on Canada's East Coast. Because of limited pipeline capacity in the Bakken region and in Canada, oil producers are increasingly using railroads to transport oil to refineries.
The Canadian Railway Association recently estimated that as many as 140,000 carloads of crude oil will be shipped on Canada's tracks this year - up from 500 carloads in 2009. The Quebec disaster is the fourth freight train accident in Canada under investigation involving crude oil shipments since the beginning of the year.
Wayde Schafer, a North Dakota spokesman for the Sierra Club, has predicted such a catastrophe ever since crude began leaving the North Dakota by rail in 2008.
"I think anybody could have foreseen this," said Schafer. "It seemed like a disaster waiting to happen and it happened."
Source : Sapa-AP /gm
Date : 09 Jul 2013 05:58
LazyLion
King of de Jungle
Missing are presumed dead, making Death Toll 50
Everyone missing in the fiery crash of a runaway oil train in Quebec is presumed dead, police told grieving families, bringing the death toll to 50 in Canada's worst railway catastrophe in almost 150 years.
Meanwhile, attention focused on the CEO of the railway's parent company, who faced jeers from local residents and blamed the train's engineer for improperly setting its brakes before the disaster.
Officials said Wednesday evening that 20 bodies had been found in this burned-out town, and 30 people were missing.
"We informed them of the potential loss of their loved ones," said Quebec police inspector Michel Forget, who came to an afternoon news briefing from a meeting with families of the dead and missing. "You have to understand that it's a very emotional moment."
Edward Burkhardt, the head of the train's U.S.-based parent company blamed the engineer for failing to set the brakes properly before the unmanned Montreal, Maine & Atlantic Railway train hurtled down a seven-mile (11-kilometer) incline, derailed and ignited in the center of Lac-Megantic early Saturday. All but one of its 73 cars was carrying oil, and at least five exploded.
The crash has raised questions about the rapidly growing use of rail to transport oil in North America, especially in the booming North Dakota oil fields and Alberta oil sands far from the sea.
The intensity of the explosions and fire made parts of the devastated town too hot and dangerous to enter and find bodies days after the disaster. Only one body had been formally identified, said Genevieve Guilbault of the coroner's office, and she described efforts to identify the other remains as "very long and arduous work."
Burkhardt, president and CEO of the railway's parent company, Rail World Inc., faced jeers from residents and scorn from Quebec's premier as he made his first visit to the town since the disaster. He was expected to meet with residents and the mayor Thursday.
Burkhardt said the train's engineer had been suspended without pay and was under "police control."
Investigators also had spoken with Burkhardt during his visit, said a police official, Sgt. Benoit Richard. He did not elaborate.
Until Wednesday, the railway company had defended its employees' actions, but that changed abruptly as Burkhardt singled out the engineer.
"We think he applied some hand brakes, but the question is, did he apply enough of them?" Burkhardt said. "He said he applied 11 hand brakes. We think that's not true. Initially we believed him, but now we don't."
Burkhardt did not name the engineer, though the company had previously identified the employee as Tom Harding of Quebec. Harding has not spoken publicly since the crash.
"He's not in jail, but police have talked about prosecuting him," Burkhardt said. "I understand exactly why the police are considering criminal charges ... If that's the case, let the chips fall where they may."
Investigators are also looking at a fire on the same train just hours before the disaster. A fire official has said the train's power was shut down as standard operating procedure, meaning the train's air brakes would have been disabled. In that case, hand brakes on individual train cars would have been needed.
The derailment is Canada's worst railway disaster since a train plunged into a Quebec river in 1864, killing 99.
Quebec police have said they were pursuing a wide-ranging criminal investigation, extending to the possibilities of criminal negligence and some sort of tampering with the train before the crash. The heart of the town's central business district is being treated as a crime scene and remained cordoned off by police tape.
At a news conference shortly before Burkhardt's arrival, Quebec Premier Pauline Marois faulted his company's response.
"We have realized there are serious gaps from the railway company from not having been there and not communicating with the public," Marois said. She depicted Burkhardt's attitude as "deplorable" and "unacceptable."
Burkhardt, who arrived in town with a police escort, said he had delayed his visit in order to deal with the crisis from his office in Chicago, saying he was better able to communicate from there with insurers and officials in different places.
"I understand the extreme anger," he said. "We owe an abject apology to the people in this town."
In an exchange with reporters, Burkhardt defended the practice of leaving trains unmanned, as was the case when the train rolled away. Canadian transportation department officials have said there are no regulations against it.
"For the future we, and I think probably the rest of the industry, aren't going to be leaving these trains unmanned," Burkhardt said. "We'll take the lead with that. I think the rest of the industry is going to follow."
Among the residents looking on as Burkhardt spoke was Raymond Lafontaine, who is believed to have lost a son, two daughters-in-law and an employee in the disaster.
"That man, I feel pity for him," Lafontaine said. "Maybe some who know him properly may think he's the greatest guy in the world, but with his actions, the wait that took place, it doesn't look good."
The disaster forced about 2,000 of the town's 6,000 residents from their homes, but most have been allowed to return.
---
Associated Press writers David Crary in Lac-Megantic and Charmaine Noronha in Toronto contributed to this report.
Source : Sapa-AP /pk
Date : 11 Jul 2013 09:00
Everyone missing in the fiery crash of a runaway oil train in Quebec is presumed dead, police told grieving families, bringing the death toll to 50 in Canada's worst railway catastrophe in almost 150 years.
Meanwhile, attention focused on the CEO of the railway's parent company, who faced jeers from local residents and blamed the train's engineer for improperly setting its brakes before the disaster.
Officials said Wednesday evening that 20 bodies had been found in this burned-out town, and 30 people were missing.
"We informed them of the potential loss of their loved ones," said Quebec police inspector Michel Forget, who came to an afternoon news briefing from a meeting with families of the dead and missing. "You have to understand that it's a very emotional moment."
Edward Burkhardt, the head of the train's U.S.-based parent company blamed the engineer for failing to set the brakes properly before the unmanned Montreal, Maine & Atlantic Railway train hurtled down a seven-mile (11-kilometer) incline, derailed and ignited in the center of Lac-Megantic early Saturday. All but one of its 73 cars was carrying oil, and at least five exploded.
The crash has raised questions about the rapidly growing use of rail to transport oil in North America, especially in the booming North Dakota oil fields and Alberta oil sands far from the sea.
The intensity of the explosions and fire made parts of the devastated town too hot and dangerous to enter and find bodies days after the disaster. Only one body had been formally identified, said Genevieve Guilbault of the coroner's office, and she described efforts to identify the other remains as "very long and arduous work."
Burkhardt, president and CEO of the railway's parent company, Rail World Inc., faced jeers from residents and scorn from Quebec's premier as he made his first visit to the town since the disaster. He was expected to meet with residents and the mayor Thursday.
Burkhardt said the train's engineer had been suspended without pay and was under "police control."
Investigators also had spoken with Burkhardt during his visit, said a police official, Sgt. Benoit Richard. He did not elaborate.
Until Wednesday, the railway company had defended its employees' actions, but that changed abruptly as Burkhardt singled out the engineer.
"We think he applied some hand brakes, but the question is, did he apply enough of them?" Burkhardt said. "He said he applied 11 hand brakes. We think that's not true. Initially we believed him, but now we don't."
Burkhardt did not name the engineer, though the company had previously identified the employee as Tom Harding of Quebec. Harding has not spoken publicly since the crash.
"He's not in jail, but police have talked about prosecuting him," Burkhardt said. "I understand exactly why the police are considering criminal charges ... If that's the case, let the chips fall where they may."
Investigators are also looking at a fire on the same train just hours before the disaster. A fire official has said the train's power was shut down as standard operating procedure, meaning the train's air brakes would have been disabled. In that case, hand brakes on individual train cars would have been needed.
The derailment is Canada's worst railway disaster since a train plunged into a Quebec river in 1864, killing 99.
Quebec police have said they were pursuing a wide-ranging criminal investigation, extending to the possibilities of criminal negligence and some sort of tampering with the train before the crash. The heart of the town's central business district is being treated as a crime scene and remained cordoned off by police tape.
At a news conference shortly before Burkhardt's arrival, Quebec Premier Pauline Marois faulted his company's response.
"We have realized there are serious gaps from the railway company from not having been there and not communicating with the public," Marois said. She depicted Burkhardt's attitude as "deplorable" and "unacceptable."
Burkhardt, who arrived in town with a police escort, said he had delayed his visit in order to deal with the crisis from his office in Chicago, saying he was better able to communicate from there with insurers and officials in different places.
"I understand the extreme anger," he said. "We owe an abject apology to the people in this town."
In an exchange with reporters, Burkhardt defended the practice of leaving trains unmanned, as was the case when the train rolled away. Canadian transportation department officials have said there are no regulations against it.
"For the future we, and I think probably the rest of the industry, aren't going to be leaving these trains unmanned," Burkhardt said. "We'll take the lead with that. I think the rest of the industry is going to follow."
Among the residents looking on as Burkhardt spoke was Raymond Lafontaine, who is believed to have lost a son, two daughters-in-law and an employee in the disaster.
"That man, I feel pity for him," Lafontaine said. "Maybe some who know him properly may think he's the greatest guy in the world, but with his actions, the wait that took place, it doesn't look good."
The disaster forced about 2,000 of the town's 6,000 residents from their homes, but most have been allowed to return.
---
Associated Press writers David Crary in Lac-Megantic and Charmaine Noronha in Toronto contributed to this report.
Source : Sapa-AP /pk
Date : 11 Jul 2013 09:00
Fulcrum29
Honorary Master
Don’t their engineers have checklists to complete and report, even my work is double-checked and pro-actively monitored?
The company should also be hold responsible in regard with negligence. It makes me believe that there is more to this story and is partly being covered-up.
killadoob
Honorary Master
No the company says this sort of thing will always happen when carrying that kinda of cargo. That is their official statement. Shyte happens basically and deal with it.
LazyLion
King of de Jungle
Tougher Rules Urged
Canada's main opposition party called Thursday for tougher rail-industry regulations after a weekend derailment and explosion in a small Quebec town left 50 people dead or missing.
The New Democratic Party (NDP) notably pressed Prime Minister Stephen Harper's Conservative government to set a deadline for phasing out the use of DOT-111 tank cars in the transport of hazardous materials.
It also urged the end of the current practice of having a single engineer aboard a train "when dangerous goods are being transported."
Part of a train made up of 72 tank cars loaded with crude oil derailed in the early hours of Saturday in Lac-Megantic, near the Quebec-Maine border, igniting a huge explosion that laid waste to the center of the lakeside town.
Twenty-four people have been confirmed dead and 26 remain unaccounted for with little hope of being found alive, Quebec provincial police said Thursday, as accident investigators continued to comb through the rubble.
The first victim to be identified was a 93-year-old local woman, the coroner's office said.
Police said another 600 people out of some 2,000 initially evacuated during the disaster were allowed to return on Thursday as police trimmed their area of search, but some 200 remain at shelters.
The train was hauling crude oil from North Dakota via Montreal and the northern part of Maine to a refinery in the Canadian Maritime province of New Brunswick.
The head of the US-owned Montreal, Maine and Atlantic Railway has faulted the train's engineer for failing to properly set the hand brakes before it raced out of control down the tracks into Lac-Megantic.
Canada's Transportation Safety Board says the DOT-111 tank car is widely used by railways across North America to carry products as varied as corn oil and petroleum products.
But critics say their single-wall construction -- compared to double-walled propane tank cars -- make them vulnerable to puncture and spillage in the event of an accident.
Canadian Transport Minister Denis Lebel has said that 350,000 of the half-million rail tank cars on Canadian and US railways are DOT-111 models which can typically carry 100 tons of oil each.
The NDP also appealed to Harper's government to make public "all audits" of Montreal, Maine and Atlantic's rail operations and to revoke its operating license "if their safety measures are inadequate."
The disaster has raised questions about the surge in shipments of crude oil on North American railways, at a time when Ottawa is pushing Washington to approve a major pipeline project through the US heartland.
Separately, Quebec Premier Pauline Marois, visiting Lac-Megantic for the second time since the disaster, condemned as "deplorable" the conduct of both the railway and its Chicago-based chairman Edward Burkhardt.
"In my opinion, he should have been on the scene from the outset of this incident," she said, a day after Burkhardt paid his first visit to the town to see the damage first-hand.
Burkhardt, an investor in railways in North America, Central Europe and New Zealand, has said it was more effective for him to remain in Chicago initially to deal with lawyers and insurers.
Marois, leader of the separatist Parti Quebecois, said the railway --whose press releases translated into poor French angered many citizens -- should have done a better job communicating with townspeople and officials.
Quebec has released $60 million to help Lac-Megantic rebuild.
"We will do everything possible for the response to be adequate, efficient and immediate," Marois said.
Source : Sapa-AFP /gm
Date : 12 Jul 2013 01:14
Canada's main opposition party called Thursday for tougher rail-industry regulations after a weekend derailment and explosion in a small Quebec town left 50 people dead or missing.
The New Democratic Party (NDP) notably pressed Prime Minister Stephen Harper's Conservative government to set a deadline for phasing out the use of DOT-111 tank cars in the transport of hazardous materials.
It also urged the end of the current practice of having a single engineer aboard a train "when dangerous goods are being transported."
Part of a train made up of 72 tank cars loaded with crude oil derailed in the early hours of Saturday in Lac-Megantic, near the Quebec-Maine border, igniting a huge explosion that laid waste to the center of the lakeside town.
Twenty-four people have been confirmed dead and 26 remain unaccounted for with little hope of being found alive, Quebec provincial police said Thursday, as accident investigators continued to comb through the rubble.
The first victim to be identified was a 93-year-old local woman, the coroner's office said.
Police said another 600 people out of some 2,000 initially evacuated during the disaster were allowed to return on Thursday as police trimmed their area of search, but some 200 remain at shelters.
The train was hauling crude oil from North Dakota via Montreal and the northern part of Maine to a refinery in the Canadian Maritime province of New Brunswick.
The head of the US-owned Montreal, Maine and Atlantic Railway has faulted the train's engineer for failing to properly set the hand brakes before it raced out of control down the tracks into Lac-Megantic.
Canada's Transportation Safety Board says the DOT-111 tank car is widely used by railways across North America to carry products as varied as corn oil and petroleum products.
But critics say their single-wall construction -- compared to double-walled propane tank cars -- make them vulnerable to puncture and spillage in the event of an accident.
Canadian Transport Minister Denis Lebel has said that 350,000 of the half-million rail tank cars on Canadian and US railways are DOT-111 models which can typically carry 100 tons of oil each.
The NDP also appealed to Harper's government to make public "all audits" of Montreal, Maine and Atlantic's rail operations and to revoke its operating license "if their safety measures are inadequate."
The disaster has raised questions about the surge in shipments of crude oil on North American railways, at a time when Ottawa is pushing Washington to approve a major pipeline project through the US heartland.
Separately, Quebec Premier Pauline Marois, visiting Lac-Megantic for the second time since the disaster, condemned as "deplorable" the conduct of both the railway and its Chicago-based chairman Edward Burkhardt.
"In my opinion, he should have been on the scene from the outset of this incident," she said, a day after Burkhardt paid his first visit to the town to see the damage first-hand.
Burkhardt, an investor in railways in North America, Central Europe and New Zealand, has said it was more effective for him to remain in Chicago initially to deal with lawyers and insurers.
Marois, leader of the separatist Parti Quebecois, said the railway --whose press releases translated into poor French angered many citizens -- should have done a better job communicating with townspeople and officials.
Quebec has released $60 million to help Lac-Megantic rebuild.
"We will do everything possible for the response to be adequate, efficient and immediate," Marois said.
Source : Sapa-AFP /gm
Date : 12 Jul 2013 01:14
LazyLion
King of de Jungle
24 Bodies Found
The first victim of a runaway oil train's explosive derailment in a Quebec town was identified Thursday, more than five days since the disaster, as the intensity of the fire has slowed searches for the 50 people presumed dead.
Quebec's premier toured the traumatized town and sharply criticized the U.S. railway's chief for not responding in person more quickly to Canada's worst railway disaster in nearly 150 years.
Police said four more bodies had been found, bringing the total found to 24.
The first victim to be identified by the coroner's office was 93-year-old Eliane Parenteau, who lived in the disaster zone in downtown Lac-Megantic. Those who knew her described her as being active for her age.
Premier Pauline Marois arrived in town and renewed her criticism of Edward Burkhardt, president and CEO of U.S.-based Rail World Inc., which owns the runaway train.
"The leader of this company should have been there from the beginning," Marois said at a news conference.
Burkhardt arrived in town for the first time Wednesday with a police escort, facing jeers from residents.
Burkhardt has said he delayed his visit to deal with the crisis from his Chicago office, saying he was better able to communicate from there.
"I understand the extreme anger," he said. "We owe an abject apology to the people in this town."
He has blamed the engineer for failing to set the brakes properly before the unmanned train hurtled down a seven-mile (11-kilometer) incline, derailed and ignited. All but one of its 73 cars was carrying oil, and at least five exploded.
Burkhardt said the engineer had been suspended without pay and was under "police control." Burkhardt did not name the engineer, though the company had previously identified the employee as Tom Harding of Quebec. Harding has not spoken publicly since the crash.
Anger at the railway officials among residents appeared to mount Thursday.
Lac-Megantic's mayor, Colette Roy-Laroche, said a hoped-for meeting with Burkhardt didn't materialize.
"I am angry with the fact that he did not communicate with me sooner," she said.
At Burkhardt's head office, an aide said no snub of the mayor was intended.
"There's been a misunderstanding on that issue," said Cathy Aldana. "Our people have been in contact with mayor's office daily, and I know Mr. Burkhardt wanted to see her personally."
Nearly all the 2,000 residents forced to evacuate after the crash - a third of the population- were now able to return home, the mayor said.
Investigators are also looking at a fire on the same train just hours before the disaster. A fire official has said the train's power was shut down as standard operating procedure, meaning the train's air brakes would have been disabled. In that case, hand brakes on individual train cars would have been needed.
The derailment is Canada's worst railway disaster since a train plunged into a Quebec river in 1864, killing 99.
The crash has raised questions about the rapidly growing use of rail to transport oil in North America, especially in the booming North Dakota oil fields and Alberta oil sands far from the sea.
---
Associated Press writers David Crary in Lac-Megantic, Charmaine Noronha in Toronto and Tammy Webber in Chicago contributed to this report.
Source : Sapa-AP /gm
Date : 12 Jul 2013 00:35
The first victim of a runaway oil train's explosive derailment in a Quebec town was identified Thursday, more than five days since the disaster, as the intensity of the fire has slowed searches for the 50 people presumed dead.
Quebec's premier toured the traumatized town and sharply criticized the U.S. railway's chief for not responding in person more quickly to Canada's worst railway disaster in nearly 150 years.
Police said four more bodies had been found, bringing the total found to 24.
The first victim to be identified by the coroner's office was 93-year-old Eliane Parenteau, who lived in the disaster zone in downtown Lac-Megantic. Those who knew her described her as being active for her age.
Premier Pauline Marois arrived in town and renewed her criticism of Edward Burkhardt, president and CEO of U.S.-based Rail World Inc., which owns the runaway train.
"The leader of this company should have been there from the beginning," Marois said at a news conference.
Burkhardt arrived in town for the first time Wednesday with a police escort, facing jeers from residents.
Burkhardt has said he delayed his visit to deal with the crisis from his Chicago office, saying he was better able to communicate from there.
"I understand the extreme anger," he said. "We owe an abject apology to the people in this town."
He has blamed the engineer for failing to set the brakes properly before the unmanned train hurtled down a seven-mile (11-kilometer) incline, derailed and ignited. All but one of its 73 cars was carrying oil, and at least five exploded.
Burkhardt said the engineer had been suspended without pay and was under "police control." Burkhardt did not name the engineer, though the company had previously identified the employee as Tom Harding of Quebec. Harding has not spoken publicly since the crash.
Anger at the railway officials among residents appeared to mount Thursday.
Lac-Megantic's mayor, Colette Roy-Laroche, said a hoped-for meeting with Burkhardt didn't materialize.
"I am angry with the fact that he did not communicate with me sooner," she said.
At Burkhardt's head office, an aide said no snub of the mayor was intended.
"There's been a misunderstanding on that issue," said Cathy Aldana. "Our people have been in contact with mayor's office daily, and I know Mr. Burkhardt wanted to see her personally."
Nearly all the 2,000 residents forced to evacuate after the crash - a third of the population- were now able to return home, the mayor said.
Investigators are also looking at a fire on the same train just hours before the disaster. A fire official has said the train's power was shut down as standard operating procedure, meaning the train's air brakes would have been disabled. In that case, hand brakes on individual train cars would have been needed.
The derailment is Canada's worst railway disaster since a train plunged into a Quebec river in 1864, killing 99.
The crash has raised questions about the rapidly growing use of rail to transport oil in North America, especially in the booming North Dakota oil fields and Alberta oil sands far from the sea.
---
Associated Press writers David Crary in Lac-Megantic, Charmaine Noronha in Toronto and Tammy Webber in Chicago contributed to this report.
Source : Sapa-AP /gm
Date : 12 Jul 2013 00:35
LazyLion
King of de Jungle
Bodies Recovered Slowly
The bodies of less than half of the 50 people believed dead in a runaway oil train's explosive derailment have been recovered, nearly a week after the accident which demolished a large part of a Quebec town.
The devastated downtown remained dangerous for days as responders put out fires and struggled to keep the remaining oil tankers cool so they wouldn't explode.
The hazardous conditions delayed the search for the missing - and now for bodies so badly burnt that coroners have only been able to make one positive identification so far.
The first victim to be identified by the coroner's office on Thursday was 93-year-old Eliane Parenteau, who lived in the disaster zone in downtown Lac-Megantic.
Police said four more bodies had been found, bringing the total found to 24.
Quebec's premier toured the traumatized town and sharply criticized the U.S. railway's chief for not responding in person more quickly to Canada's worst railway disaster in nearly 150 years.
Conditions had at least improved enough for nearly all the 2,000 residents forced to evacuate after the crash - a third of the population- to return home, the town's mayor said.
Quebec Premier Pauline Marois arrived in town and renewed her criticism of Edward Burkhardt, president and CEO of U.S.-based Rail World Inc., which owns the runaway train.
"The leader of this company should have been there from the beginning," Marois said at a news conference.
Burkhardt arrived in town for the first time Wednesday with a police escort, facing jeers from residents.
Burkhardt has said he delayed his visit to deal with the crisis from his Chicago office, saying he was better able to communicate from there.
"I understand the extreme anger," he said. "We owe an abject apology to the people in this town."
He has blamed the engineer for failing to set the brakes properly before the unmanned train hurtled down a seven-mile (11-kilometer) incline, derailed and ignited. All but one of its 73 cars was carrying oil, and at least five exploded.
Burkhardt said the engineer had been suspended without pay and was under "police control." Burkhardt did not name the engineer, though the company had previously identified the employee as Tom Harding of Quebec. Harding has not spoken publicly since the crash.
Anger at the railway officials among residents appeared to mount Thursday.
Lac-Megantic's mayor, Colette Roy-Laroche, said a hoped-for meeting with Burkhardt didn't materialize.
"I am angry with the fact that he did not communicate with me sooner," she said.
At Burkhardt's head office, an aide said no snub of the mayor was intended.
"There's been a misunderstanding on that issue," said Cathy Aldana. "Our people have been in contact with mayor's office daily, and I know Mr. Burkhardt wanted to see her personally."
Investigators are also looking at a fire on the same train just hours before the disaster. A fire official has said the train's power was shut down as standard operating procedure, meaning the train's air brakes would have been disabled. In that case, hand brakes on individual train cars would have been needed.
The derailment is Canada's worst railway disaster since a train plunged into a Quebec river in 1864, killing 99.
The crash has raised questions about the rapidly growing use of rail to transport oil in North America, especially in the booming North Dakota oil fields and Alberta oil sands far from the sea.
---
Associated Press writers Sean Farrell in Lac-Megantic, Charmaine Noronha in Toronto and Tammy Webber in Chicago contributed to this report.
Source : Sapa-AP /pd
Date : 12 Jul 2013 14:39
The bodies of less than half of the 50 people believed dead in a runaway oil train's explosive derailment have been recovered, nearly a week after the accident which demolished a large part of a Quebec town.
The devastated downtown remained dangerous for days as responders put out fires and struggled to keep the remaining oil tankers cool so they wouldn't explode.
The hazardous conditions delayed the search for the missing - and now for bodies so badly burnt that coroners have only been able to make one positive identification so far.
The first victim to be identified by the coroner's office on Thursday was 93-year-old Eliane Parenteau, who lived in the disaster zone in downtown Lac-Megantic.
Police said four more bodies had been found, bringing the total found to 24.
Quebec's premier toured the traumatized town and sharply criticized the U.S. railway's chief for not responding in person more quickly to Canada's worst railway disaster in nearly 150 years.
Conditions had at least improved enough for nearly all the 2,000 residents forced to evacuate after the crash - a third of the population- to return home, the town's mayor said.
Quebec Premier Pauline Marois arrived in town and renewed her criticism of Edward Burkhardt, president and CEO of U.S.-based Rail World Inc., which owns the runaway train.
"The leader of this company should have been there from the beginning," Marois said at a news conference.
Burkhardt arrived in town for the first time Wednesday with a police escort, facing jeers from residents.
Burkhardt has said he delayed his visit to deal with the crisis from his Chicago office, saying he was better able to communicate from there.
"I understand the extreme anger," he said. "We owe an abject apology to the people in this town."
He has blamed the engineer for failing to set the brakes properly before the unmanned train hurtled down a seven-mile (11-kilometer) incline, derailed and ignited. All but one of its 73 cars was carrying oil, and at least five exploded.
Burkhardt said the engineer had been suspended without pay and was under "police control." Burkhardt did not name the engineer, though the company had previously identified the employee as Tom Harding of Quebec. Harding has not spoken publicly since the crash.
Anger at the railway officials among residents appeared to mount Thursday.
Lac-Megantic's mayor, Colette Roy-Laroche, said a hoped-for meeting with Burkhardt didn't materialize.
"I am angry with the fact that he did not communicate with me sooner," she said.
At Burkhardt's head office, an aide said no snub of the mayor was intended.
"There's been a misunderstanding on that issue," said Cathy Aldana. "Our people have been in contact with mayor's office daily, and I know Mr. Burkhardt wanted to see her personally."
Investigators are also looking at a fire on the same train just hours before the disaster. A fire official has said the train's power was shut down as standard operating procedure, meaning the train's air brakes would have been disabled. In that case, hand brakes on individual train cars would have been needed.
The derailment is Canada's worst railway disaster since a train plunged into a Quebec river in 1864, killing 99.
The crash has raised questions about the rapidly growing use of rail to transport oil in North America, especially in the booming North Dakota oil fields and Alberta oil sands far from the sea.
---
Associated Press writers Sean Farrell in Lac-Megantic, Charmaine Noronha in Toronto and Tammy Webber in Chicago contributed to this report.
Source : Sapa-AP /pd
Date : 12 Jul 2013 14:39
LazyLion
King of de Jungle
Canada Troughens Train Rules After Deadly Disaster
Canadian transportation authorities banned one-man crews for trains with dangerous goods Tuesday, responding to calls for tougher regulations after an oil train derailment in Quebec killed 47 people.
Transport Canada also said trains with dangerous goods will not be allowed to be left unattended on a main track. Hand brakes must be applied to trains left one hour or more.
The July 6 tragedy occurred when a runaway train carrying 72 carloads of crude derailed, hurtled down an incline and slammed into downtown Lac-Megantic. Several train cars exploded and 40 buildings were leveled. The unattended Montreal, Maine & Atlantic Railway train had been parked overnight on a rail line before it came loose.
"The disaster brought to light several industry practices which have caused some concern," said Gerard McDonald, assistant deputy minister of safety and security at Transport Canada. "Given that and with an abundance of precaution, we thought it would be prudent to implement these measures now."
Transport Canada says the cause of the derailment remains unknown. Canada's Transportation Safety Board, which is investigating the accident, had asked for changes in regulations governing rail traffic.
Transport Canada also is giving rail operators five days to ensure nobody without authorization can enter the cab of unattended locomotives on a main track or sidings.
Meanwhile, the town of Lac-Megantic is taking legal action against Montreal, Maine & Atlantic.
Mayor Colette Roy-Laroche said the rail company has not yet paid any of the workers it hired to clean up the crude oil that leaked from dozens of tanker cars. She said at a news conference that the town paid the workers $4 million after some threatened to walk off the job. Lawyers have been asked to inform the rail company it must reimburse the money immediately, Roy Laroche said.
The company did not immediately respond to a message seeking comment.
A Chicago-based law firm has begun filing wrongful-death lawsuits on behalf of victims of the Quebec railway disaster in a U.S. court against the rail and oil companies involved in the accident.
Peter Flowers, of the law firm Meyers & Flowers, had filed two lawsuits by the end of Tuesday, and was expected to file five more lawsuits on Wednesday at the Cook County courthouse in Illinois.
"We expect 15 to 20 at least over the next couple of days," Flowers said Tuesday. "We'll be asking for millions of dollars for every one of these folks. ... This is a horrible tragedy."
Flowers' first lawsuit, filed Monday, was initiated by the family of Jean-Guy Veilleux, who was killed in the runaway train disaster.
It seeks damages from 10 defendants, including Montreal, Maine & Atlantic; its major stockholder Rail World Inc.; Edward Burkhardt, president of Rail Road and chairman of MMA, and several U.S. petroleum companies. The train was carrying North Dakota oil destined for a refinery in St. John, New Brunswick.
Calls placed Tuesday to most of the defendants listed in the lawsuit were not immediately returned.
The lawsuit alleges that the railway and petroleum companies named had a duty to operate their businesses in a "safe manner and to take reasonable measures to avoid exposing the public to the dangers associated with the transport of crude oil to refineries."
The lawsuit also alleges that the defendants were negligent for transporting crude oil in flawed DOT-111 tanker cars. The safety of these tanker cars has been called into question by the U.S. National Transportation Safety Board since a 1991 study found that they were known to rupture at a high rate during derailments.
Burkhardt was the only individual listed in the lawsuit. The lawsuit alleges that Burkhardt has a past record as a top executive with other railway companies of reducing crew sizes to cut costs - a measure that allegedly increased the accident rate.
Source : Sapa-AP /dm
Date : 24 Jul 2013 03:39
Canadian transportation authorities banned one-man crews for trains with dangerous goods Tuesday, responding to calls for tougher regulations after an oil train derailment in Quebec killed 47 people.
Transport Canada also said trains with dangerous goods will not be allowed to be left unattended on a main track. Hand brakes must be applied to trains left one hour or more.
The July 6 tragedy occurred when a runaway train carrying 72 carloads of crude derailed, hurtled down an incline and slammed into downtown Lac-Megantic. Several train cars exploded and 40 buildings were leveled. The unattended Montreal, Maine & Atlantic Railway train had been parked overnight on a rail line before it came loose.
"The disaster brought to light several industry practices which have caused some concern," said Gerard McDonald, assistant deputy minister of safety and security at Transport Canada. "Given that and with an abundance of precaution, we thought it would be prudent to implement these measures now."
Transport Canada says the cause of the derailment remains unknown. Canada's Transportation Safety Board, which is investigating the accident, had asked for changes in regulations governing rail traffic.
Transport Canada also is giving rail operators five days to ensure nobody without authorization can enter the cab of unattended locomotives on a main track or sidings.
Meanwhile, the town of Lac-Megantic is taking legal action against Montreal, Maine & Atlantic.
Mayor Colette Roy-Laroche said the rail company has not yet paid any of the workers it hired to clean up the crude oil that leaked from dozens of tanker cars. She said at a news conference that the town paid the workers $4 million after some threatened to walk off the job. Lawyers have been asked to inform the rail company it must reimburse the money immediately, Roy Laroche said.
The company did not immediately respond to a message seeking comment.
A Chicago-based law firm has begun filing wrongful-death lawsuits on behalf of victims of the Quebec railway disaster in a U.S. court against the rail and oil companies involved in the accident.
Peter Flowers, of the law firm Meyers & Flowers, had filed two lawsuits by the end of Tuesday, and was expected to file five more lawsuits on Wednesday at the Cook County courthouse in Illinois.
"We expect 15 to 20 at least over the next couple of days," Flowers said Tuesday. "We'll be asking for millions of dollars for every one of these folks. ... This is a horrible tragedy."
Flowers' first lawsuit, filed Monday, was initiated by the family of Jean-Guy Veilleux, who was killed in the runaway train disaster.
It seeks damages from 10 defendants, including Montreal, Maine & Atlantic; its major stockholder Rail World Inc.; Edward Burkhardt, president of Rail Road and chairman of MMA, and several U.S. petroleum companies. The train was carrying North Dakota oil destined for a refinery in St. John, New Brunswick.
Calls placed Tuesday to most of the defendants listed in the lawsuit were not immediately returned.
The lawsuit alleges that the railway and petroleum companies named had a duty to operate their businesses in a "safe manner and to take reasonable measures to avoid exposing the public to the dangers associated with the transport of crude oil to refineries."
The lawsuit also alleges that the defendants were negligent for transporting crude oil in flawed DOT-111 tanker cars. The safety of these tanker cars has been called into question by the U.S. National Transportation Safety Board since a 1991 study found that they were known to rupture at a high rate during derailments.
Burkhardt was the only individual listed in the lawsuit. The lawsuit alleges that Burkhardt has a past record as a top executive with other railway companies of reducing crew sizes to cut costs - a measure that allegedly increased the accident rate.
Source : Sapa-AP /dm
Date : 24 Jul 2013 03:39