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Did Norfolk Southern neglect safety protocols in pursuit of DEI and ESG initiatives?On February 3rd, dozens of Norfolk Southern train cars derailed while traveling through East Palestine, Ohio, with 11 of those cars carrying ultra hazardous chemical agents. Some three days later, those chemicals were burned off into the air, after officials expressed concerns that the materials could explode and ignite an even greater catastrophe. Could all of this have been avoided? On Thursday, the NTSB (National Transportation Safety Board) determined in a preliminary report that an overheated wheel bearing on a Norfolk Southern train car could be responsible for...

NEWPORT, Ind. (AP) - Army contractors halted operations Saturday at a western Indiana complex built to destroy a deadly nerve agent after nearly 500 gallons of caustic wastewater spilled in a contained area. No workers were injured or exposed to the hydrolysate, a byproduct of the destruction of the agent, when it leaked onto the floor of a sealed area at the Newport Chemical Depot, depot spokesman Dennis Lindsey said. The facility was to be shut down until the spill was cleaned up and its cause determined, Lindsey said. The western Indiana facility destroys the Cold War-era chemical weapon VX...

CHARLESTON, W.Va. (AP) — A state official said Wednesday that he "can guarantee" some West Virginians are breathing in traces of a carcinogen while showering after the chemical spill, but federal health guidelines say people need to breathe "a lot of it" to be a problem.

When toxic chemicals spilled into the Elk River in Charleston, West Virginia a couple of weeks ago we got another glimpse into what the world might look like in the aftermath of a major, widespread disaster.

Freedom Industries, the unfortunately named company whose chemical leak contaminated the water supply for parts of West Virginia, filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection on Friday. The company voted to pursue bankruptcy protection during a voluntary board meeting on Friday, according to WVNS-TV. The Wall Street Journal reports official company papers from the meeting estimate their debt at roughly $10 million, which does not include the impending clean-up costs and lawsuits, which will no doubt be immense.

LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WHAS11) – The chemical that spilled into the Elk River last week in Charleston, West Virginia is expected to pass through Louisville in the Ohio River on Friday. Officials with Louisville Water said there is absolutely no cause for concern. By the time the water reaches Louisville and cycles through the filtration plant, there will be no detectable levels of the chemical, MCHM, in the water. Still, even the thought of chemicals in the water has people running to grab bottled water from the store. “We did not expect the rush to be this large,” said Camie Popham,...

KANAWHA COUNTY, WV - Despite Rod Jones of South Charleston being told his region could start flushing and using his water again, he still experienced symptoms after using his water. "My stomach was upset within seconds and my hands broke up in a rash," he said. He did all of the flushing procedures twice, and did it longer than what West Virginia America Water advised. It's something health experts told us they expected to see as people began turning on the water again. "We've seen about a couple dozen in the last couple of days," said Megan Evans, a physician's...

Frequently Asked Questions/Consumption of Water by Pregnant Women/Developed by the West Virginia Bureau for Public Health in conjunction with the CDC (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention) Question: Will this chemical harm my fetus (unborn baby)? Answer: There are no known studies showing harm to the fetus as a result of consuming water with MCHM levels below 1 ppm. Although there is no information that suggests harm to the fetus, out of abundance of precaution, pregnant women may wish to consume bottled water until levels of MCHM are undetectable in the water system. Question: May I go to restaurants or...

CHARLESTON, W.Va.—Officials in Kentucky and Ohio were preparing Monday for the arrival of a slow-moving, 60-mile-long chemical plume drifting toward them down the Ohio River, after its accidental release prompted a five-day water ban here. While many said they didn't foresee a major problem, they also weren't taking chances after the release of the chemical, called 4-methylcyclohexane methanol, or MCHM. Cincinnati Mayor John Cranley said his city is going to shut down its water valves for 48 hours beginning Tuesday night, but has enough stored supply to continue providing water. Water sanitation officials had found the leading edge of the...

Gov. Tomblin has announced that Zone 2, which is mostly the Kanawha City area, is now a blue zone. Residents are being asked to begin the flushing process.

CHARLESTON, W.Va. (AP) - Frustration is mounting for many of the 300,000 West Virginia residents who've gone three days without clean tap water.

CHARLESTON, W.Va. (AP) - Frustration is mounting for many of the 300,000 West Virginia residents who've gone three days without clean tap water. Chris Laws found bottled water on Saturday for his two elderly next-door neighbors. "They can't get out," said Laws, 42, of Marmet, a coal miner. "I'm keeping an eye on them. You got to watch out for your neighbors. They're the ones who are going to watch out for you." He said he was angry at the company at the center of the leak, Freedom Industries. "A lot of people are facing bad situations because of this,"...

CHARLESTON, W.Va. (WSAZ) -- During a press conference Saturday afternoon, the DEP said they now estimate 7,500 gallons of MCHM (4-Methylcyclohexane Methanol) have leaked into the Elk River in Kanawha County. The emergency do not use water order is still in place Saturday as crews continue to test water supplies from several different areas. Mike Dorsey with the DEP says they are "fairly confident" that the leak started Thursday. West Virginia American Water customers in parts of nine counties are under a do not use water order. Those counties are also under a state of emergency issued Thursday evening by...

CHARLESTON, W.Va. (WSAZ) -- West Virginia American Water held a press conference Friday morning saying a water use ban will remain in effect indefinitely in parts of 9 counties after a chemical leak in Charleston. West Virginia American Water President Jeffrey McIntyre says at this point, they can't say the water is unsafe to drink, but they also can't say the water is safe. WVAW says they were notified about 12 p.m. Thursday by the West Virginia DEP about a leak at Freedom Industries on Barlow Drive. During a press conference Friday morning, McIntyre said they were originally given incorrect...

CHARLESTON, W.Va. (WSAZ) -- The National Guard says tests show the amount of chemical in the water is going down, but is still not where it needs to be for residents to use the water. West Virginia American Water customers in parts of nine counties have been under a do not use water order since early Thursday evening. Those nine counties are also under a state of emergency declared by Gov. Earl Ray Tomblin. A chemical leak was noticed Thursday morning in the Elk River, near Freedom Industries. The company has since been forced by the DEP to shut down...

Sounds like a spill not an explosion.

<p>A railcar leaking acid forced the closure of major highways and the evacuation of more than 6,000 people. By late Sunday, about 5,000 of the 13,000 gallons of industrial waste had leaked into the ground, but South Salt Lake fire officials were hoping to pump out the rest within a few hours and end the evacuation. There were no injuries, but the area downwind of the leak was evacuated because of fumes from the spill, Fire Chief Steve Foote said. Evacuation centers were set up at church meeting houses, but most of those evacuated were staying with friends or relatives. The waste, eventually found to be hydrochloric, hydrofluoric, nitric and sulfuric acids, was discovered leaking about 6 a.m. and the tanker wall was becoming soft, Foote said Sunday night. Officials brought in 6,500-gallon portable tank. They first planned to lift a hazmat technician in a cherry picker to the top of the tanker so he could attach a hose to the rail tanker and pump the acids into the portable tanks. However, they changed their plans after a specialist from Las Vegas arrived and the latest idea was to pierce the side of the tank with remotely operated equipment and pump it into the portable tanks. "Once we have one tank that's filled and holding, we could lift the evacuation order," Foote said. The cherry-picker plan was being kept in mind as a backup. The fire officials and Gov. Jon Huntsman expressed displeasure at the difficulty in determining exactly what was in the tanker. "It's tough to know how to respond if you don't know the contents of the bulk container," Huntsman said. The leak was discovered while crews were loading chemicals into the parked railcar at a Union Pacific rail yard. Officials said the tanker car was owned by Kennecott Utah Copper and was sublet to Phillips Environmental, which could not tell them immediately what all was in the waste. "We're going to be looking into that," Foote said. "When we ask a direct question, we expect a direct answer." Eventually, tests determined what acids were in the waste, and Phillips Environmental provided verbal confirmation. Documents finally were delivered late Sunday. The spilled acid has not yet been neutralized. Foote said authorities wanted to concentrate on the tanker first. Officers closed 600 West from 2100 South to 2700 South. Northbound I-15 from 4500 South to 2100 South, the westbound I-80 off ramp to southbound I-15, and the southbound collector on I-15 up to westbound I-80 also were closed. The area south and east of the rail yard was evacuated. A little less than one square mile recommended for evacuation, with less than half of that a mandatory evacuation area. The acids were not full strength but still are highly toxic and can cause severe burns if they come in direct contact with the skin or eyes, and the fumes can cause respiratory problems.</p>

INDIANAPOLIS -- Hazmat crews are dealing with a chemical spill on the northwest side that officials believe was not accidental. Officials said the spill was contained at Chem Central of Indianapolis at 5850 W. 82nd Street. Officials closed 82nd Street from Zionsville Road to Interstate 465, and evacuated workers who were exposed to the chemicals and from eight surrounding businesses that were downwind from the plant. Workers found around 15,000 gallons of a mix of six flammable chemicals were discovered spilled around 5:30 a.m., and emergency officials were called around 8:45 a.m., RTV6's Derrik Thomas reported. There was no runoff...

Eastern China chemical spill kills 13 07/08/2002 Associated Press BEIJING - Liquid ammonia spilled from a burst pipe at a fertilizer plant in eastern China on Monday, killing 13 people and injuring 11, a local official and state media said. The ammonia pipe, located in a workshop at the Shenxian County Fertilizer Company in Shandong province, burst around 2 a.m., the official Xinhua News Agency reported. One person died on the spot, Xinhua said, and police and fire officials sent the injured to a nearby hospital. The exact causes of death were not immediately clear. It was not clear...