US safety board opens probe into Norfolk Southern after derailments
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A closed road on Feb 14 near the site of a train derailment on Feb 3 in East Palestine, Ohio.
PHOTO: AFP
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WASHINGTON – The US National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) on Tuesday announced a wide-ranging investigation into transport company Norfolk Southern’s safety practices and culture after recent derailments.
Norfolk Southern has been under fire after several derailments of its trains, particularly one on Feb 3 in East Palestine, Ohio, that caused toxic vinyl chloride and other hazardous chemicals being transported to spill and catch fire.
“Given the number and significance of recent Norfolk Southern accidents, the NTSB also urges the company to take immediate action today to review and assess its safety practices, with the input of employees and others, and implement necessary changes to improve safety,” the board said in announcing what it called a special investigation.
The NTSB, Federal Railroad Administration and Occupational Safety and Health Administration earlier on Tuesday said they were investigating the death of a Norfolk Southern conductor in Cleveland.
“Now more than ever, it is time for stronger freight railroad accountability and safety,” Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg said on Twitter.
Norfolk Southern chief executive Alan Shaw is scheduled to testify on Thursday before a Senate committee on the East Palestine derailment.
Since that derailment, some of the town’s 4,700 residents have reported ailments such as rashes and breathing difficulties and fear long-term health effects, but no deaths or injuries were reported after the derailment.
The NTSB said that given the number and significance of recent Norfolk Southern accidents, it also “urges the company to take immediate action today to review and assess its safety practices”.
Since December 2021, NTSB has launched investigation teams for five significant accidents involving Norfolk Southern, including a March 4 derailment of a Norfolk Southern freight train near Springfield, Ohio.
As part of the special investigation, the NTSB will also review a Norfolk Southern derailment in Sandusky, Ohio, that occurred in October 2022.
“The continued safe operations of Norfolk Southern is vital to the United States. The NTSB is concerned that several organisational factors may be involved in the accidents, including safety culture,” the board said. REUTERS
