Officials are asking about railroad safety after a fiery derailment in Ohio generated a huge plume of smoke and forced evacuations in a small town because of concerns about the toxic chemicals the train was carrying.
, killed nine people and injured more than 250 after toxic chlorine gases were released.
Some say that's not enough. An East Palestine business owner and two other residents sued the rail operator in federal court on Tuesday, alleging negligence. Among other things, the lawsuit says the railroad failed to maintain and inspect its tracks and rail cars, failed to provide appropriate employee training, and failed to reasonably warn the public.
Government accident data shows an uptick in accidents in recent years, although the numbers remain quite small at 8,929 last year. Accidents were tallied at a rate of 17.4 per million train miles in 2019, but that drops to 2.9 accidents per million train miles without incidents at railroad crossings and those involving trespassers that are largely out of railroads’ control.
Professor Allan Zarembski, who leads the University of Delaware's Rail Engineering and Safety Program, said railroads are continually working to improve safety and prevent derailments.
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Residents not yet allowed to return to homes near site of fiery train derailment in OhioGov. DeWine and Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro had ordered evacuations for a 1-mile-by-2-mile area surrounding East Palestine, a village of about 5,000 people near the Pennsylvania border, DeWine said.
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