Only a matter of time before a train derailment is catastrophic

Brownsville derailment sign
of deteriorating infrastructure

The next rail accident might not be so easy to clean up.

And, inevitably, there will be a next one, says Ken Tschumper, a rail safety advocate reacting after the Canadian Pacific derailment near Brownsville, Minn., on Tuesday night.

“It’s not ‘if’ it’s going to occur, it’s ‘when’ it’s going to occur,” Tschumper said.

He says the next rail accident could be another oil spill, explosion or pesticides going into a local water supply.

“We’re going to see, either huge amounts of pesticides go into some river someplace,” Tschumper said, “or some city’s public water system, and it’s going to be horrendous.”

Tschumper believes there’s always the potential for devastation on the Mississippi River when you consider the amount of hazardous materials shipped by rail along the river.

“The more we keep threatening, or allowing, the potential for spills either of oil or other dangerous and hazardous materials,” Tschumper said, “the more we’re threatening that resource, and that resource is just vitally important.”

Tschumper insists rail accidents like the Brownsville derailment are caused by excessive use by crude oil trains and those carrying heavy frac sand. The accident illustrates the fragility of overall rail infrastructure in the U.S.