Quebec town rocked by explosions, fire after oil train derailment

Goober

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Appears this Govt thinks a lie is the norm

In Lac-Mégantic disaster’s wake, watchdog claims ministry failed to spend millions in rail safety funds | National Post

Transport Canada said Wednesday that it had failed to deliver on three key commitments to improve its oversight of the transportation of dangerous products based on weaknesses identified in the December 2011 audit by the federal environment commissioner in the auditor general’s office.

But following the Lac-Megantic train disaster, which has claimed dozens of lives following a derailment and explosion in the small Quebec town, the department claimed in statements that it was still on schedule to meet its commitments and was granted extensions by the auditor general’s office, which refuted those claims.


“We aren’t, as auditors, the ones who grant extensions,” said Celine Bissonnette, a spokeswoman for the auditor general’s office. “That is Transport Canada’s own decision, for which they alone are accountable.”

At the time of the 2011 audit, the former environment commissioner, Scott Vaughan, noted that the problems were “not new” and had been identified in internal audits five years earlier.

Vaughan’s audit found that inspectors were not following up in ensuring compliance in most cases after uncovering problems during inspections of transportation of dangerous products in a variety of modes, including railways, roads, shipments on water and air.
 

Locutus

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Class action lawsuit request filed in Lac-Megantic explosion



MONTREAL - A lawyer in Lac-Megantic, QC, who says he knew many of the victims of the deadly train derailment that devastated the small town is spearheading a class action lawsuit on behalf of survivors.

Daniel Larochelle, whose law office was destroyed in the July 6 crude-oil blast, filed a request Monday for a class action against the Montreal, Maine and Atlantic (MMA) Railway, its executives and two insurers.

Among the executives named is Edward Burkhardt, the elderly American CEO who was heckled by residents when he visited Lac-Megantic last week.

more

Sun News : Class action lawsuit request filed in Lac-Megantic explosion
 

Locutus

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Lac-Mégantic engineer breaks his silence, in hiding as media shown devastation of town’s inner core

MONTREAL — The train engineer at the centre of the Lac-Mégantic disaster investigation has finally spoken out — through his lawyer.

The attorney says Tom Harding is devastated by the events.

Lawyer Tom Walsh says his client is staying at an undisclosed location in the province, on his advice, to avoid the constant barrage of journalists at his Eastern Townships home.

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Lac-Mégantic engineer breaks his silence, in hiding as media shown devastation of town’s inner core | National Post
 

DaSleeper

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There are some steep grades in the mill yard where I used to work and I just recalled them using wheel chocks similar as the following except that the locking mechanism was underneath the rail so that if it slipped the rail ties would stop any movement......
They seemed pretty safe to me but.....??????



There also exist train derailers for extreme danger zones
 

hunboldt

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Lac-Mégantic engineer breaks his silence, in hiding as media shown devastation of town’s inner core

MONTREAL — The train engineer at the centre of the Lac-Mégantic disaster investigation has finally spoken out — through his lawyer.

The attorney says Tom Harding is devastated by the events.

Lawyer Tom Walsh says his client is staying at an undisclosed location in the province, on his advice, to avoid the constant barrage of journalists at his Eastern Townships home.

more

Lac-Mégantic engineer breaks his silence, in hiding as media shown devastation of town’s inner core | National Post

OH for the love of it! If you don't LOCK the hand brakes a twelve year old can release them!

The NP has become a real propaganda machine......
 

taxslave

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Can anyone explain how train brakes work? Never having lived near trains my education is somewhat lacking. I just assumed (I know bad idea) that they are similar to truck brakes in that they have a spring parking brake that requires air to release. From what I have read this does not seem to be the case. Just how archaic are their systems?
 

captain morgan

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Can anyone explain how train brakes work? Never having lived near trains my education is somewhat lacking. I just assumed (I know bad idea) that they are similar to truck brakes in that they have a spring parking brake that requires air to release. From what I have read this does not seem to be the case. Just how archaic are their systems?

I'm wondering if the brake system is more along the lines of finding a small stick of wood to place in front of one of the wheels... maybe even a small boat anchor thrown out on the side of the tracks
 

taxslave

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I'm wondering if the brake system is more along the lines of finding a small stick of wood to place in front of one of the wheels... maybe even a small boat anchor thrown out on the side of the tracks

From what I have read they seem to be the prototype of Fred Flintstone brakes.
 

taxslave

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Hand brakes are more of a parking brake - when used. Trains still hug the hill (balance on the grade) when set out.

It is the parking brake system or lack thereof that interests me. Manually set parking brakes on a 100+ car train does not seem to me to be a viable system.
 

Durry

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I heard that the oil was light crude - certainly of a grade where combustibles like gas or aviation fuel can be refined-out in quantity.... But until it is refined, those derivatives are 'locked' (so to speak) into the body of the crude.

There would certainly be a volume of aromatics 'available' and would release higher quantities if heat applied (ie fire started by the friction of the brakes), but I am skeptical that this kind of situation is possible.

All said, what we do know is that whatever was being hauled and whatever the 'special circumstances', the results are documented and that is not exactly cold-comfort to those families that lost their homes or family members.

... Here's hoping that they find the party(s) responsible and hang 'em by their nuts from the flag pole in the center of the soon-to-be-rebuilt town
Not sure if anyone had ever officially announced what was the contents of these rail cars.
So far I think they have only said that it was crude from the Bakken!!

Bakken crude is typically very light and kinda loaded with condensates. Probably pretty heavy on the condensate side!!
With the cars coming of the rails and stacking up all over down town, I suspect there would be ample ignition sources to light the fire.

Anyways, just my thoughts on this topic.
 

Goober

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Not sure if anyone had ever officially announced what was the contents of these rail cars.
So far I think they have only said that it was crude from the Bakken!!

Bakken crude is typically very light and kinda loaded with condensates. Probably pretty heavy on the condensate side!!
With the cars coming of the rails and stacking up all over down town, I suspect there would be ample ignition sources to light the fire.

Anyways, just my thoughts on this topic.

There have been numerous reports of corrosion in rail cars, pipe due to the solvents used by some companies that remains in the crude.
 

Durry

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Well I'm not sure about the corrosion story. Crude is not corrosive so unless it got corroded from previous produced stuff that cars hauled, crude would not have aggravated the corrosion.

Yeah, there may have been some solvents or other chemicals in the crude because the crude could have come a fracking operation. But I think this would be a pretty small percentage.