Fiery Train Derailment in Minnesota Prompts Evacuations

March 30, 2023

Print This Article Share it With Friends

(Associated Press) A train hauling ethanol and corn syrup derailed and caught fire in Minnesota early Thursday and nearby residents were ordered to evacuate their homes, authorities said. The BNSF train derailed in the town of Raymond, roughly 100 miles (161 kilometers) west of Minneapolis, about 1 a.m., according to a statement from Kandiyohi County Sheriff Eric Tollefson.

BNSF said in a statement that 22 cars derailed with four catching fire, but that no injuries were reported due to the accident.

“The main track is blocked and an estimated time for reopening the line is not available,” according to the statement from BNSF spokesperson Lena Kent. “The cause of the incident is under investigation.”

Homes in an area 1/2 mile (0.8 kilometers) around the site were evacuated, according to Tollefson, and residents were taken to a shelter in nearby Prinsburg.

U.S. Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg told CNN that about 14 cars were carrying hazardous materials. BNSF said the only hazardous material on board was ethanol.

“We’ve been in touch with the governor,” Buttigieg said, and Environmental Protection Agency officials were en route to the site “given the hazardous material situation.”

Railroad safety has been in the spotlight nationally ever since last month’s fiery derailment of a Norfolk Southern train near East Palestine, Ohio. Roughly half of that town of about 5,000 people near the Pennsylvania border had to be evacuated after officials decided to release and burn toxic chemicals.

Federal regulators and members of Congress have proposed reforms they want railroads to make to prevent future derailments. READ MORE

Safer train cars credited for preventing catastrophe in Raymond derailment (KSTP.com)

Ohio train derailment: Fetterman unveils Democratic legislation to bolster rail safety (Washington Examiner)

Minnesota train derailment – latest: Governor visits Raymond after ethanol in cars catch fire (MSN/The Independent; includes VIDEO)

Cleanup begins after fiery Minnesota ethanol derailment: Workers have started removing contaminated soil and damaged railcars left behind after Thursday's fiery train derailment in southwest Minnesota (ABC News)

Excerpt from MSN/The Independent: Residents of a small town in Minnesota were allowed back home late on Thursday morning after being evacuated due to a fiery freight train derailment.

People in Raymond, 100 miles west of Minneapolis, had been ordered to leave in the early hours on Thursday.

Some 22 cars, carrying ethanol and corn syrup, came off the tracks. Several cars burst into flames, according to the Kandiyohi County Sheriff’s Office.

...

Residents in the immediate vicinity were ordered to leave their homes, and a half-mile evacuation zone was set up around the crash site.

BNSF Railway, the company which owns the train, told The Independent there were no other hazardous materials on the train and no injuries as a result of the incident. READ MORE

Excerpt from KSTP.com: Enhanced safety measures on tanker cars are being credited with preventing a massive explosion after a train derailment in central Minnesota.

Nearly two dozen cars, most carrying ethanol, went off the rails in Raymond early Thursday morning. No one was injured.

Hours after the derailment, Gov. Tim Walz stood side-by-side with BNSF executives touting the more insulated cars, known as DOT-117Js.

“I hope you know that the safeguards put in place, the regulations, the things the railroad does, is to make sure they don’t explode,” Walz said during a press conference.

The new cars are reinforced with thicker steel and have relief valves. The design is meant to prevent or limit spills from dangerous cargo like ethanol.

...

Federal regulators are requiring the new model of tanker cars to be on all rail lines by May 1. Railroads are on track to meet that deadline, according to the Renewable Fuels Association.

In a report to Congress last fall, the U.S. Department of Transportation said more than 8,000 of these safer cars were manufactured in 2022.

In 2015, 5 EYEWITNESS NEWS profiled the new tanker cars while they were being manufactured at a railyard in Texas, shortly after the added regulations were announced.

While the cars were not required to be rolled out until this year, BNSF instituted a more aggressive timeline to get them on the tracks.

“We work very hard on prevention of these types of incidents at BNSF,” the company’s CEO and President Katie Farmer said. “We work on mitigation. These were the safest tank cars.” READ MORE

Excerpt from Washington Examiner: "This bill will implement commonsense safety reforms, hold the big railway companies accountable, protect the workers who make these trains run, and help prevent future catastrophes that endanger communities near railway infrastructure," Fetterman said in a statement.

Under the proposal, FRA would investigate "wheel-related failures and derailments," strengthen "switchyard safety practices," and require freight rail firms to use a "close call" reporting system, among other provisions. It builds on the bipartisan Railway Safety Act the trio of Casey, Brown, and Fetterman presented earlier this month with Sens. J.D. Vance (R-OH), Josh Hawley (R-MO), and Marco Rubio (R-FL).

The Railway Safety Act, which hasn't yet received a vote in the upper chamber, enhances safety regulations for railway companies but was specific to "trains transporting hazardous materials." The bill also called for increasing the tempo of rail car inspections and mandating a two-person crew to work on trains transporting hazardous content. Some Republicans have voiced skepticism over it.

Unlike the Railway Safety Act, the Railway Accountability Act does not appear to have garnered bipartisan support for its introduction, but the trio underscored its importance.

“Rail lobbyists have fought for years to protect their profits at the expense of communities like East Palestine and Steubenville and Sandusky. These commonsense safety measures will finally hold big railroad companies accountable, make our railroads and the towns along them safer, and prevent future tragedies," Brown said. READ MORE