Crude oil derailment, fire

[rswinnerton]

That 'treehugger' writer is an idiot. Crude oil isn't explosive. Combustible yes, but not explosive. Also, he only got the air brake thing half right. If the brake valve was set to any position other than 'release', the air would bleed off the cars eventually. I think he fails to explain the difference between train brakes and the independent brake, which would fit the description of what was going on. It also doesn't take long for a 2 man (or even 1 man) crew to set the requisite number of handbrakes. 15-20 cars would likely have been sufficient to hold the train. Sounds like it was laziness on someone's part.

[central.vermont]

A picture may be worth 1000 words, but, clearly, 1000 words is not necessarily worth a picture . . . especially in a foreign language.   

Thanks Dave...................

[Specter3]

Well  beyond the guy having no clue, can some someone educate me on railroad braking systems? I know what the handbrakes do. If train airbrakes operate like bus airbrakes I know how that works. Big mechanical spring clamps brakes on when no air pressure present. What is an independent brake? I understand leaving the loco running, saves a lot of wear and tear on the motor and when the next crew shows up there is already air in the tanks to start airing up the train. Some new locos are designed to start and stop though. Sat next to one a few years back that was stamped "equipped with autostart" and when the crew got the green the second and third unit started and they were off. Basic brake lesson please?

[peteski]

Well  beyond the guy having no clue, can some someone educate me on railroad braking systems? I know what the handbrakes do. If train airbrakes operate like bus airbrakes I know how that works. Big mechanical spring clamps brakes on when no air pressure present. What is an independent brake? I understand leaving the loco running, saves a lot of wear and tear on the motor and when the next crew shows up there is already air in the tanks to start airing up the train. Some new locos are designed to start and stop though. Sat next to one a few years back that was stamped "equipped with autostart" and when the crew got the green the second and third unit started and they were off. Basic brake lesson please?

I'm not an expert on 1:1 railroads, and I don't even play one on the Railwire, but http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Railway_air_brake  seems to have a good explanation.

[Puddington]

Latest report from CBC puts death toll at 13... But it will grow.... Reports confirm loco had fire hours earlier that was extingished by local Fire Dept. who confirmed they shut down the loco to reduce chance of fire restarting and as such air brakes bled off pressure. No one can confirm if local track man, who was on site ensured hand brakes were set on minimum number of cars... Worth noting the consist was tied up on a grade and this was not abnormal. MMA chairman is hinting Fire Dept. errors are a prime cause while Fire Chief disagrees saying they have had experience with other fires on MMA locos..... Blame game has begun.... Tragic accident who's death toll will continue to climb.....

[nkalanaga]

From the NZ papers tonight (North American time):
"A volunteer fire service was called out late on Friday night (Saturday NZT) to deal with an engine fire on one of the train's locomotives.

Nantes Fire Chief Patrick Lambert said the crew had switched off the engine as they extinguished a "good-sized" blaze in the engine, probably caused by a fuel or oil line break in the engine.

The problem was that the engine had been left on by the train's engineer to maintain pressure in the air brakes, Ed Burkhardt, chairman of Montreal, Maine & Atlantic Railway (MMA), said in an interview. As the pressure gradually "leaked off", the air brakes failed and the train began to slide downhill, he said.

The fire service said it contacted a local MMA dispatcher in Farnham, Quebec, after the blaze was out. "We told them what we did and how we did it," Lambert said.

Asked whether there had been any discussion about the brakes, he replied: "There was no discussion of the brakes at that time. We were there for the train fire. As for the inspection of the train after the fact, that was up to them."

It was not immediately clear what the MMA dispatcher did after speaking with the fire service. Burkhardt said the fire service should have also tried to contact the train's operator, who was staying at a nearby hotel.

"If the engine was shut off, someone should have made a report to the local railroad about that," he said. "

http://www.stuff.co.nz/world/americas/8893688/Train-crash-disaster-scene-inaccessible

[nkalanaga]

Specter3:  From what I've seen (NOT a truck or bus driver), highway airbrakes are spring applied and air released.  If the pressure is low, the springs apply the brakes, and, from what you said, the only way to release them is to build up the pressure again.

Train airbrakes are more complicated.  Technically, they're air applied, spring released, so if there's no air, the brakes don't work.  That's why switch crews "bleed the air" before yard switching.  The original "straight air" brakes, on trains and trucks, worked this way all the time.

Modern train "automatic air" brakes use a complicated "triple valve" and air reservoirs to reverse the process.  If the car's brake reservoir has pressure, and the train line doesn't, or is lower pressure than the reservoir, the pressure in the reservoir keeps the brake cylinder pressurized, and the brakes on.  It the train line pressure is higher than the reservoir, the pressure is released from the cylinder, and the brakes released.  At the same time, the reservoir is pressurized to the train line pressure, and is ready for the next application.

Thus, if the train line breaks, the train goes into emergency, due to the lack of train line pressure.  But since there's always some leakage, eventually the pressure in the car reservoir will drop too low to work the cylinder, and the brakes will release.

That's also why the crew always closes the angle cocks before uncoupling a car.  Otherwise the pressure in the train line is lost, and the train goes into emergency.  It takes a while to build the pressure back up in a long train. 

At yards, the departure tracks often have "yard air" connections, where the train line and reservoirs can be recharged before the engines are attached.  Since the cars have all been bled, it takes even longer than after an emergency application, because the reservoirs are also empty.

[trainforfun]

1 ) Burkhardt ( no Mr. ) , president of MMA , in his first press release never said a word about how sorry he was about the people's lost , no sympathy , no nothing ! Just that they had insurance and they will pay for all ...

2 )  They blame the firemen not to have awaked the engineer in the nearby hotel , I think this was the job of the dispatcher  .

3 ) I still don't understand why they leave trains , running , unattended at least by some private security patrol . Specially these days where some crazy guys only search for things like that to make trouble .
Even a grain or wood train would have make quite a mess .

4 ) A parking lot for trains at the top of a hill is a very bad choice , specially when there is a long slope toward a town , with a sharp curve ...

[mcjaco]

I heard reports yesterday that they now think there was tampering with the couplers. 

Strange and scary story.

[Dave Schneider]

I realize that emotions are running high as the scope of this disaster becomes more evident. Here is a statement from the MMA from Saturday. http://www.mmarail.com/sections/news/files/MMA_7.6.2013_Press.Release.pdf

I suspect that the employees and management do feel an enormous burden for what has occurred.

Best wishes, Dave

[trainforfun]

I realize that emotions are running high as the scope of this disaster becomes more evident. Here is a statement from the MMA from Saturday. http://www.mmarail.com/sections/news/files/MMA_7.6.2013_Press.Release.pdf

I suspect that the employees and management do feel an enormous burden for what has occurred.

Best wishes, Dave

OK , I will put back the Mr. in front of Burkhardt then .

[cv_acr]

3 ) I still don't understand why they leave trains , running , unattended at least by some private security patrol . Specially these days where some crazy guys only search for things like that to make trouble .
Even a grain or wood train would have make quite a mess .

And just how far exactly do you extend that?

Anywhere an engine is parked? Anywhere a cut of cars is left standing?

Any medium sized town could have a dozen such locations at any given time...

[DKS]

http://www.reuters.com/news/pictures/slideshow?articleId=USRTX11GOV#a=1

[tom mann]

This has got to be the worst train-related disaster, right?

[pjm20]

If you want to see disasters, look up CN on Wikipedia, it is not to good.