Graniteville train disaster
Encyclopedia
The Graniteville train disaster was an American rail
disaster that occurred on January 6, 2005, in Graniteville, South Carolina
.
At roughly 2:40 am Eastern Standard Time
, two Norfolk Southern trains collided near an Avondale Mills plant in Graniteville. Norfolk Southern train No. P22 was parked on a siding
near the Avondale Mills plant. Train No. 192, which was transporting chlorine
gas, sodium hydroxide and cresol
, was diverted by an improperly lined railroad switch
onto the siding, where it collided with P22. The collision derailed both locomotives and 16 of 192's 42 freight cars, as well as the locomotive and one of P22's two freight cars. One of 192's tank car
s loaded with 90 tons of chlorine ruptured, releasing about 60 tons of the gas. About 1/3 of the load was recovered by industrial responders. Nine people died (eight at the time of the accident, one later due to chlorine inhalation), and at least 250 people were treated for chlorine exposure.
5,400 residents within a mile of the crash site were forced to evacuate for nearly two weeks while HAZMAT
teams and cleanup crews decontaminated the area.
Eight people lost their lives in the Graniteville train disaster on the day of the accident:
On April 21, 2005, one more death was attributed to the accident. Leonard Mathis, a brick mason in Graniteville, was driving home from a convenience store just after the accident occurred. On his way home, he passed through a portion of the chlorine cloud that resulted from the collision. His health deteriorated from that point.
30 to $40 million, including the corporation's self-insurance retention under its insurance policies and other uninsured costs, but not any fines or penalties that might be imposed.
On May 25, 2005, lawyers involved in the damages claims against Norfolk Southern announced that they had reached a preliminary agreement on settlements for area residents and business that were evacuated but did not seek medical attention. In this preliminary settlement, Norfolk Southern would offer each resident who was evacuated and did not seek medical attention within 72 hours of the accident a flat amount of $2,000 for the evacuation plus $200 per person per day of the evacuation. These amounts are separate from any property damage claims. Claims that involve injury or death are not included in this settlement, but are still being negotiated.
On May 22, 2006, Avondale Mills' CEO, G. Stephen Felker Sr., announced that his firm would close all its plants, corporate and sales offices no later than July 25, throwing more than 4,000 workers across four states out of work. Mr. Felker cited the 2005 derailment as the primary reasons for the company's failure. The wreck knocked out the Gregg plant of Avondale mills, which was a key pillar in for survival in a shrinking United States textile market. The plant accounted for 40 percent of the company's sales.
Stephen Felker Jr., Avondale's manager of corporate development stated,"We were prepared to weather the storm of global competition. What we weren't prepared for was an event such as this derailment, which was completely beyond our control." Avondale Mills Inc. reached a $215 million settlement with its insurance company for damages caused by a train derailment and fatal chemical spill here. However it is generally assumed that since the plant would have been fully insured and/or covered by Norfolk Southern's accident insurance, that the owners chose to take the settlement money and leave rather than rebuild the damaged plant.
As a result of this accident and a similar accident on the Burlington Northern and Santa Fe Railway on January 8, 2005, the United States Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) released to railroads a reminder of federal regulations on procedures for turnout operation and safety procedures. Among the federal rules regarding turnouts are:
The FRA further recommended that railroads should:
.
On April 7, 2008, Norfolk Southern and interests representing Avondale Mills, and its surviving entities, reached a confidential out of court settlement.
On April 24, 2008, Norfolk Southern was sued by the U.S. EPA for violations of the Clean Water Act, as Horse Creek had been polluted. In a similar lawsuit in Pennsylvania, where a derailed Norfolk Southern runaway train crashed, the state of Pennsylvania sued the railroad for similar violations and won several million dollars for environmental remediation. However, fines may be minimal when compared to the damage to the surrounding environment.
On March 8, 2010, Norfolk Southern Railway Company agreed to pay $4 million penalty to resolve alleged violations of the Clean Water Act (CWA) and hazardous materials laws for a 2005 chlorine spill in Graniteville, S.C. Under the settlement filed in federal court in Columbia, S.C., Norfolk Southern will be required to pay a civil penalty of $3,967,500 for the alleged CWA violations, to be deposited in the federal Oil Spill Liability Trust Fund. The alleged CWA violations, included in an amended complaint filed in March 2009, are for the discharge of tons of chlorine, a hazardous substance, from a derailed train tank car and thousands of gallons of diesel fuel from ruptured locomotive engine fuel tanks. For the alleged Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act (CERCLA) violation for failure to immediately notify the National Response Center of the chlorine release, Norfolk Southern will pay a penalty of $32,500, to be deposited in the Hazardous Substance Superfund. Under the terms of the agreement, Norfolk Southern will provide incident command system training to environmental and transportation personnel; stock nearby Langley Pond with at least 3,000 fish to replace fish killed by the chlorine spill; and post the telephone number for the National Response Center to facilitate spill reporting. Further, the settlement includes a supplemental environmental project (SEP) valued at $100,000 to plant vegetation along the banks of Horse Creek to decrease erosion and sedimentation, thereby improving water quality in Horse Creek.
Texas folk artist Doug Burr memorialized the Graniteville accident in his song "Graniteville" in his 2007 released album "On Promenade". The song is fictionalized account of a husband attempting to rouse his wife from sleep to escape the dangers of the chemical spill.
Rail transport
Rail transport is a means of conveyance of passengers and goods by way of wheeled vehicles running on rail tracks. In contrast to road transport, where vehicles merely run on a prepared surface, rail vehicles are also directionally guided by the tracks they run on...
disaster that occurred on January 6, 2005, in Graniteville, South Carolina
Graniteville, South Carolina
Graniteville is an unincorporated community in Aiken County, South Carolina, United States. It lies along U.S. 1, five miles west of Aiken. The town lies in Horse Creek Valley which originates in the nearby town of Vaucluse....
.
At roughly 2:40 am Eastern Standard Time
North American Eastern Time Zone
The Eastern Time Zone of the United States and Canada is a time zone that falls mostly along the east coast of North America. Its UTC time offset is −5 hrs during standard time and −4 hrs during daylight saving time...
, two Norfolk Southern trains collided near an Avondale Mills plant in Graniteville. Norfolk Southern train No. P22 was parked on a siding
Rail siding
A siding, in rail terminology, is a low-speed track section distinct from a running line or through route such as a main line or branch line or spur. It may connect to through track or to other sidings at either end...
near the Avondale Mills plant. Train No. 192, which was transporting chlorine
Chlorine
Chlorine is the chemical element with atomic number 17 and symbol Cl. It is the second lightest halogen, found in the periodic table in group 17. The element forms diatomic molecules under standard conditions, called dichlorine...
gas, sodium hydroxide and cresol
Cresol
Cresols are organic compounds which are methylphenols. They are a widely occurring natural and manufactured group of aromatic organic compounds which are categorized as phenols . Depending on the temperature, cresols can be solid or liquid because they have melting points not far from room...
, was diverted by an improperly lined railroad switch
Railroad switch
A railroad switch, turnout or [set of] points is a mechanical installation enabling railway trains to be guided from one track to another at a railway junction....
onto the siding, where it collided with P22. The collision derailed both locomotives and 16 of 192's 42 freight cars, as well as the locomotive and one of P22's two freight cars. One of 192's tank car
Tank car
A tank car is a type of railroad rolling stock designed to transport liquid and gaseous commodities.-Timeline:...
s loaded with 90 tons of chlorine ruptured, releasing about 60 tons of the gas. About 1/3 of the load was recovered by industrial responders. Nine people died (eight at the time of the accident, one later due to chlorine inhalation), and at least 250 people were treated for chlorine exposure.
5,400 residents within a mile of the crash site were forced to evacuate for nearly two weeks while HAZMAT
Hazmat
Hazmat, HazMat and similar terms can refer to:* Hazardous materials and items—see Dangerous goods** Hazchem—a system of hazardous chemical classification and firefighting modes** A hazmat suit is a type of protective clothing...
teams and cleanup crews decontaminated the area.
Victims
- Christopher Seeling, 28, of West Columbia, South CarolinaWest Columbia, South CarolinaWest Columbia is a city in Lexington County, South Carolina, United States. The population was 13,064 at the 2000 census. It is part of the Columbia, South Carolina Metropolitan Statistical Area....
, engineer of Norfolk Southern's through train (who was found at the crash site, and later died at the hospital); - Willie C. Shealey, 43, of Graniteville, employee of Avondale Mills, Inc. (who was found in the wooded area around the Woodhead Division of Avondale Mills, Inc.);
- John Laird, 24, of North Augusta, South CarolinaNorth Augusta, South CarolinaNorth Augusta is a city in Aiken County, South Carolina, United States, on the north bank of the Savannah River. The population was 21,348 at the 2010 census. The city is included in the Central Savannah River Area and is also part of the Augusta, Georgia metropolitan area.- History :North...
, employee of Avondale Mills, Inc. (who also was found in the wooded area around the Woodhead Division of Avondale Mills, Inc.); - Fred "Rusty" Rushton, III, 41, of Warrenville, South CarolinaWarrenville, South CarolinaWarrenville is an unincorporated community in Aiken County, South Carolina, United States, near Graniteville. It is part of the Augusta, Georgia metropolitan area...
, employee of Avondale Mills, Inc. (who was found on the loading dock of the Stevens Steam Plant, belonging to Avondale Mills, Inc.); - Steven Bagby, 38, of Augusta, GeorgiaAugusta, GeorgiaAugusta is a consolidated city in the U.S. state of Georgia, located along the Savannah River. As of the 2010 census, the Augusta–Richmond County population was 195,844 not counting the unconsolidated cities of Hephzibah and Blythe.Augusta is the principal city of the Augusta-Richmond County...
, employee of Avondale Mills, Inc. (who was found in the Gregg Division of Avondale Mills, Inc.); - Allen Frazier, 58, of Ridge Spring, South Carolina, employee of Avondale Mills, Inc. (who was also found in the Gregg Division of Avondale Mills, Inc.);
- Joseph L. Stone, of QuebecQuebecQuebec or is a province in east-central Canada. It is the only Canadian province with a predominantly French-speaking population and the only one whose sole official language is French at the provincial level....
, Canada, an employee of JW Express Trucking Company; and - Tony DeLoach, 56, of Graniteville, South Carolina (who was found in his home, on Main Street, Graniteville, South Carolina, near the train wreck).
On April 21, 2005, one more death was attributed to the accident. Leonard Mathis, a brick mason in Graniteville, was driving home from a convenience store just after the accident occurred. On his way home, he passed through a portion of the chlorine cloud that resulted from the collision. His health deteriorated from that point.
Economic consequences
Norfolk Southern has announced that it expects the disaster to cost between $USUnited States dollar
The United States dollar , also referred to as the American dollar, is the official currency of the United States of America. It is divided into 100 smaller units called cents or pennies....
30 to $40 million, including the corporation's self-insurance retention under its insurance policies and other uninsured costs, but not any fines or penalties that might be imposed.
On May 25, 2005, lawyers involved in the damages claims against Norfolk Southern announced that they had reached a preliminary agreement on settlements for area residents and business that were evacuated but did not seek medical attention. In this preliminary settlement, Norfolk Southern would offer each resident who was evacuated and did not seek medical attention within 72 hours of the accident a flat amount of $2,000 for the evacuation plus $200 per person per day of the evacuation. These amounts are separate from any property damage claims. Claims that involve injury or death are not included in this settlement, but are still being negotiated.
On May 22, 2006, Avondale Mills' CEO, G. Stephen Felker Sr., announced that his firm would close all its plants, corporate and sales offices no later than July 25, throwing more than 4,000 workers across four states out of work. Mr. Felker cited the 2005 derailment as the primary reasons for the company's failure. The wreck knocked out the Gregg plant of Avondale mills, which was a key pillar in for survival in a shrinking United States textile market. The plant accounted for 40 percent of the company's sales.
Stephen Felker Jr., Avondale's manager of corporate development stated,"We were prepared to weather the storm of global competition. What we weren't prepared for was an event such as this derailment, which was completely beyond our control." Avondale Mills Inc. reached a $215 million settlement with its insurance company for damages caused by a train derailment and fatal chemical spill here. However it is generally assumed that since the plant would have been fully insured and/or covered by Norfolk Southern's accident insurance, that the owners chose to take the settlement money and leave rather than rebuild the damaged plant.
Findings and recommendations
On November 29, 2005, the NTSB issued a report officially blaming the accident on the P22 train crew's failure to reline the switch for mainline operations. The report concluded that neither equipment failure nor crew fatigue or drug or alcohol use was a factor in the accident. It further concluded that the level and immediacy of emergency response to the accident was wholly appropriate for the situation.As a result of this accident and a similar accident on the Burlington Northern and Santa Fe Railway on January 8, 2005, the United States Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) released to railroads a reminder of federal regulations on procedures for turnout operation and safety procedures. Among the federal rules regarding turnouts are:
- The normal position for turnouts on mainline tracks is for mainline through traffic.
- When trains are required to clear the mainline track, they will not report that the track is clear until there are no obstructions on the mainline track and all turnouts are set for the mainline position and locked in place.
The FRA further recommended that railroads should:
- ensure that their internal regulations include adequate safety procedures regarding turnout position.
- implement a paper trail to ensure adequate inspection of turnout position before a mainline track is declared cleared.
Litigation
Avondale Mills filed suit against Norfolk Southern claiming that the railroad was negligent in its operations through Graniteville and that this alleged negligence was the root cause of the accident. After the accident, Avondale Mills was closed, laying off thousands of employees and paid more than $140 million on clean up and repair expenses. The trial opened on March 10, 2008, in federal court in Columbia, South CarolinaColumbia, South Carolina
Columbia is the state capital and largest city in the U.S. state of South Carolina. The population was 129,272 according to the 2010 census. Columbia is the county seat of Richland County, but a portion of the city extends into neighboring Lexington County. The city is the center of a metropolitan...
.
On April 7, 2008, Norfolk Southern and interests representing Avondale Mills, and its surviving entities, reached a confidential out of court settlement.
On April 24, 2008, Norfolk Southern was sued by the U.S. EPA for violations of the Clean Water Act, as Horse Creek had been polluted. In a similar lawsuit in Pennsylvania, where a derailed Norfolk Southern runaway train crashed, the state of Pennsylvania sued the railroad for similar violations and won several million dollars for environmental remediation. However, fines may be minimal when compared to the damage to the surrounding environment.
On March 8, 2010, Norfolk Southern Railway Company agreed to pay $4 million penalty to resolve alleged violations of the Clean Water Act (CWA) and hazardous materials laws for a 2005 chlorine spill in Graniteville, S.C. Under the settlement filed in federal court in Columbia, S.C., Norfolk Southern will be required to pay a civil penalty of $3,967,500 for the alleged CWA violations, to be deposited in the federal Oil Spill Liability Trust Fund. The alleged CWA violations, included in an amended complaint filed in March 2009, are for the discharge of tons of chlorine, a hazardous substance, from a derailed train tank car and thousands of gallons of diesel fuel from ruptured locomotive engine fuel tanks. For the alleged Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act (CERCLA) violation for failure to immediately notify the National Response Center of the chlorine release, Norfolk Southern will pay a penalty of $32,500, to be deposited in the Hazardous Substance Superfund. Under the terms of the agreement, Norfolk Southern will provide incident command system training to environmental and transportation personnel; stock nearby Langley Pond with at least 3,000 fish to replace fish killed by the chlorine spill; and post the telephone number for the National Response Center to facilitate spill reporting. Further, the settlement includes a supplemental environmental project (SEP) valued at $100,000 to plant vegetation along the banks of Horse Creek to decrease erosion and sedimentation, thereby improving water quality in Horse Creek.
Related information
On May 24, 2005, Norfolk Southern was awarded the TRANSCAER National Achievement Award for 2004. TRANSCAER is an acronym for Transportation Community Awareness and Emergency Response, which aims to promote emergency preparedness among first responders and communities for accidents that involve chemical releases. Part of the reasons for NS's selection for this award were the emergency preparedness training that the railroad held in 18 of the 22 states through which the railroad hauls hazardous materials.Texas folk artist Doug Burr memorialized the Graniteville accident in his song "Graniteville" in his 2007 released album "On Promenade". The song is fictionalized account of a husband attempting to rouse his wife from sleep to escape the dangers of the chemical spill.