I have a friend who worked for OSHA who drummed it home again and again: There are very few accidents in the workplace. Most of them occur by companies who ignored regulations and cut corners. This sounds like one of those times. Via the Associated Press:
EAST PALESTINE, Ohio (AP) — Crews released toxic chemicals into the air from five derailed tanker cars that were in danger of exploding Monday and began burning it after warning residents near the Ohio-Pennsylvania state line to leave immediately or face the possibility of death.
Flames and black smoke billowed high into the sky from the derailment site late in the afternoon, about an hour after authorities said the controlled release would begin.
The slow release of vinyl chloride from five rail cars into a trough that was then ignited created a large plume above the village of East Palestine but authorities said they were closely monitoring the air quality.
“Thus far, no concerning readings have been detected,” Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro said at a brief evening news conference about three hours after the venting and burning procedure began.
Now, let's talk about Norfolk Southern, owners of the train that derailed.
When the focus is on profit, owners always cut costs -- no matter how dangerous it is. Seems like the broken axle that caused this derailment is something that may have been prevented by routine track maintainence -- if they had enough workers to perform it.
Just asking questions, as Tucker Carlson would say. Hope there's a real investigation into the factors.
