Another Norfolk Southern train derails in Ohio; railroad says no toxins
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[March 06, 2023]
By Brad Brooks
(Reuters) -A Norfolk Southern train derailed in Ohio on Saturday, the
second such incident involving the railroad in that state in about a
month, prompting local officials to order residents living near the
accident site to shelter in place.
Norfolk Southern said the train that derailed near Springfield was not
carrying hazardous materials and that no one was hurt. Local authorities
said first responders on the scene were working to confirm that no
toxins were involved.
The accident follows the Feb. 3 derailment of a Norfolk Southern train
in East Palestine, Ohio, about 180 miles (290 km)northeast of
Springfield. The East Palestine derailment sent millions of pounds of
toxic chemicals into the environment and forced thousands of people to
evacuate.
Norfolk Southern said in an emailed statement that Saturday's derailment
of about 20 cars of a 212-car train happened as it was traveling
southbound near Springfield. The statement did not give any cause for
the derailment.
"No hazardous materials are involved and there have been no reported
injuries," Norfolk Southern said. "Our teams are en route to the site to
begin cleanup operations."
U.S. Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg said on Twitter he was
briefed by the Federal Railroad Administration on the latest derailment
and that they would closely monitor the situation.
Ohio Governor Mike DeWine said President Joe Biden and Buttigieg called
him to offer any assistance needed with the latest accident.
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"We don't believe hazardous materials were involved," DeWine said.
U.S. Senator Sherrod Brown, a Democrat from Ohio, said on ABC's
"This Week" on Sunday morning that he was not satisfied with the
company's response to the latest derailment and questioned if
communities in Clark County could have been affected by any
potential contaminants left in the mostly empty cars. There have
been four derailments in the past five months in Ohio, Brown noted.
"The railroads got a lot of questions they've got to answer, and
they really haven't done it very well, yet," Brown said.
Clark County officials asked residents living within 1,000 feet (300
meters) of Saturday's derailment to "shelter-in-place out of an
abundance of caution," according to a statement on the county's
Facebook page.
It said there were power outages in the area due to downed power
lines resulting from the accident and that it was not clear how long
it would take to restore electricity.
The Federal Aviation Administration said on Sunday it was
implementing temporary flight restrictions over the Springfield area
until Tuesday to allow for safe relief and law enforcement
operations following the derailment.
(Reporting by Brad Brooks in Lubbock, Texas; Additional reporting by
Tyler Clifford and Maria Caspani; Editing by Paul Simao, William
Mallard, Will Dunham and Marguerita Choy)
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