Recent New York Train Accidents Avoid Personal Injuries But Not Federal Investigation, Senator's Ire
Three New York train derailments in the last three months, including one last week in Oneida, have prompted a federal investigation of tracks from Albany to Buffalo. Federal railroad administrator Joseph Boardman said in an online Observer-Dispatch story that a specially designed train will examine more than 1,300 miles of track owned by CSX Corp. Just last Monday, CSX train cars derailed and then exploded near Oneida, causing the evacuation of homes and businesses in the city of 10,000. No personal injuries were reported following this train accident.
Specifically, Boardman said the investigation will examine whether the two CSX rails are level and whether the width between tracks is acceptable. This announcement of a federal investigation into CSX-owned tracks comes nearly a week after US. Senator Charles Schumer of Brooklyn said he’s pushing legislation which would toughen regulations on rail companies, increase penalties for negligence and direct millions of dollars to improve rail infrastructure. Schumer, who said that federal regulators haven’t done enough to combat these problems, also issued a report detailing 527 upstate New York train accidents in the last seven years.
In addition to last Monday’s derailment, CSX Corp. had witnessed similar accidents in the previous months. Thirteen cars on a CSX train left the tracks in East Rochester on January 13th. Luckily, no one was injured. In December, a CSX train carrying canned vegetables derailed on an overpass in Cheektowaga, leaving one box car teetering over the edge of a bridge, according to the Observer-Dispatch story. Visit The Injury Blog for the latest developments on this federal investigation and learn more about train safety at the TrainBlog.
Dont forget about the CSX train derailment in Bullitt County Kentucky that involved 25 derailed cars and chemcials that burned for days after the accident and I am still out of my home and it has been approx 70 days.
Something has got to be done to protect our communities. I was 5 weeks pregnant and I lost my baby and feels that it was directly related to the derialment in ky. Because I was fine until after the derailment and then I miscarried. They are not in a hurry to settle with us and are not willing to compensate accurately for the time out of home and all the pain that we have suffered.