Rail safety: Terre Haute sees its share of hazardous materials, and then some

Mar. 10—Terre Haute has its share of rail traffic: At least 80 trains daily pass through, according to emergency management officials.

Are Terre Haute and Vigo County up to handling a hazardous materials incident like that which hit the small village of East Palestine, Ohio, population roughly 4,700?

On Feb. 3 in East Palestine, 38 cars from a Norfolk Southern train derailed, triggering a fire that affected another dozen cars. The fire covered the town in smoke, and a subsequent controlled release of toxic fumes to neutralize burning cargo also raised concerns and fears.

Projecting the response to a hypothetical incident is next to impossible, local authorities say, as every hazardous materials incident is different.

And, in addition to being a busy rail city, Terre Haute sits next to Interstate 70, which carries a heavy volume of truck traffic.

"God only knows what comes through. We could have anything. They can come by rail and by truck," said Dr. Dorene Hojnicki, director of Vigo County Emergency Management Agency.

So, just how do first responders approach such an incident?

One important factor is paying attention to safety placards, the diamond-shaped signs on the side of tanker cars. The numerals, colors and words can tell trained responders much about what the car is carrying, such as whether it is flammable, gaseous or potentially toxic.

"It will give you a reference point," Hojnicki said.

Hazmat teams have software that allows them to type in the placard number, time of day, air temperature, wind direction and speed to find additional information on how best to approach the scene of a spill.

But, the EMA director noted, anyone can look up the placard number to see what chemicals are being transported, whether by train or truck, through the U.S. Department of Transportation's Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration.

"It is easy to look up. If you have a cell phone and are bored and see a placard go by while waiting on a train, go ahead and punch it in, and it will tell you what it is," Hojnicki said.

A phone app can be downloaded at phmsa.dot.gov/hazmat/erg/erg2020-mobileapp. The 2020 guide is the current updated version of the hazmat guide.

"In Vigo County, you will see a lot of petroleum products, gasoline and diesel, and some corrosive materials," Hojnicki said. "On rare occasion you might see a truck marked 'explosives' on Interstate 70 that may be transiting through the county."

'A whole other game'

"It is a whole other game when it comes to railroads. It could be anything ... local governments really have very little control with the railroads," Hojnicki said.

"The EPA and the railroads really don't talk to locals, and that is an issue that a lot of communities have to deal with," she said.

As for businesses and industries, Vigo County EMA typically sees "Tier II" hazardous chemical reports that indicate what chemicals are located on a property. That information is reported to the Indiana Department of Homeland Security.

"That is more for fixed facilities, but obviously those chemicals have to get to the fixed facility by truck or rail," Hojnicki said.

The Vigo County EMA in the past has conducted a "commodity study" in an attempt to see what chemicals pass through Terre Haute.

"It is difficult to do because it is done in a snippet of time," Hojnicki said. "

"You are basically parking somewhere with a checklist and waiting for trucks and trains to come through to see the placards and record the placards.

"Some loads do not have to have placards if they are considered a mixed load," Hojmicki said.

"And there are loads that could be military or government that you never know will come through here," she said.

"We also have a lot of pipelines through here. We do training on pipelines at least once a year, and we work with local fire departments to bring in training as well.

"(Pipelines) carry jet fuel and all kinds of stuff, but mostly petroleum products and natural gas," Hojnicki said.

Today's safety issues

On March 1, the Federal Railroad Administration announced it will focus on inspections of railroad routes that carry high-hazard flammable trains and other trains carrying large volumes of hazmat commodities.

The FRA's Automated Track Inspection Program, along with human inspections, surveyed about 180,000 miles of track last year and helps remediate about 10,000 track safety defects annually.

And new rail safety rules were implemented in the early 2010s, decreasing derailments by 15%, according to the FRA.

"There are still over a thousand derailments every year — proof that the freight rail industry can still — and must — do more," according to an FRA Feb. 23 news release.

One issue, according to the FRA, is Class I railroads — those making an annual revenue of more than $500 million — have cut their workforce by 30%.

The U.S. Department of Transportation is now seeking actions such as a rule requiring a minimum two-person train crew and targeting "legacy tank cars" by calling on the railroad industry to expedite the phase-in of safer tanker cars in advance of a 2029 deadline.

U.S. DOT also wants railroad companies to provide "proactive advance notification to state emergency response teams when they are transporting hazardous gas tank cars through their states."

That's instead of of expecting first responders to look up such information after an incident occurs.

And the U.S. DOT says it will will use the bipartisan $1.2 trillion Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act to upgrade and modernize railroads and safety.

But as things now stand, the government doesn't have control of, or even a very good idea of what's moving where, when.

Neither the FRA nor any government agency can provide information that lists specific rail lines that hazardous material shipments traverse, as railroads consider such information to be proprietary.

In addition, as a federal safety regulator, the FRA does not monitor train movements or types of cargo transported by private rail companies in real time.

However, railroads do make real-time emergency information available to verified emergency response agencies through the industry's AskRail app, currently deployed on all Class I railroads.

CSX and Terre Haute

While several train companies pass daily through Terre Haute, the largest carrier is CSX Transportation Inc.

The company, in a statement to the Tribune-Star, said safety is its "number one priority."

"It's a commitment we make to our employees, our customers, and the communities through which we operate," the company stated.

"CSX's approach to delivering our customer's goods safely is holistic, focusing on infrastructure and equipment investment, training and operational improvements, technology deployment, and community outreach and preparedness.

"Freight rail remains the safest and most environmentally-friendly way to transport essential hazardous materials over land, with a 99.995% success rate.

"While safety is something we never stop working to improve, CSX has led the freight rail industry with the fewest FRA reportable train accidents and lowest average FRA reportable injury rate since 2019," the company said.

In 2023, CSX says it will spend $2.3 billion in its capital program, with $1.7 billion going to core infrastructure — track, bridges, and signals that provide safe and reliable train operations.

CSX said for security reasons, it does not disclose how and where it transports "sensitive materials to the public."

The company said, "CSX complies with federal law concerning rail security and emergency preparedness, working with Local Emergency Planning Committees (LEPC), county and state Emergency Management Agencies to ensure they have a comprehensive list of hazardous commodities transported in their communities so that first responders are prepared in the extremely rare case that a hazmat incident should occur."

People displaced

One issue that became clear after the East Palestine derailment was the displacement of individuals and families.

Emergency crews decided to burn vinyl chloride in damaged tanker cars in an effort to prevent an uncontrolled explosion. While no lives were lost, up to 2,000 nearby residents were evacuated from their homes for nearly a week.

Further, not everyone was convinced it was truly safe to return when such announcements were made.

If such an event were to happen in Indiana, disaster assistance from the Indiana Department of Homeland Security is triggered under disaster declarations.

Short-term temporary housing assistance would be handled primarily by the Red Cross (www.redcross.org/local/indiana/get-help.html), said Mike Beam, web content manager and a public information officer for the Indiana Department of Homeland Security.

The state agency may also work with organizations like the Indiana Volunteer Organizations Active in Disasters (INVOAD) for housing vouchers.

County emergency management agencies may also work with local partners in this type of scenario, Beam said.

The Indiana Family and Social Services Administration (FSSA), through programs like Indiana 211 (www.in.gov/fssa/indiana-211/), might also offer help.

"Additionally, the Indiana Department of Health or local health departments might set up clinics or other on-site services to address needs, and the Indiana Housing & Community Development Authority might also offer some assistance," Beam said.

Howard Greninger can be reached at 812-231-4204 or howard.greninger@tribstar.com. Follow on Twitter @TribStarHoward.