(WBIR - Knoxville) Thursday's fiery train derailment and evacuation in Blount County is the latest in a string of recent problems for the CSX railroad company.
A 10News review of train accidents does not appear to show a higher rate of problems with CSX compared to other railroad companies. However, because CSX specializes in hauling hazardous materials that are not safe for transport on busy interstates, there is inherently a larger impact and plenty of news coverage when the company is involved in a derailment anywhere in the country.
The situation is exacerbated by a spike in volatile crude shale oil being transported on U.S. railways. The problem has become so prevalent that CSX specifically noted in its statement about the Blount County derailment that there were no cars hauling crude oil.
The boom in shale oil from fracking in North Dakota now has more oil on the rails than ever. The federal government says the crude from North Dakota is more flammable than other crudes from California or Canada. In 2014, the amount of oil being transported by train was equal to the amount of oil transported from 2004 to 2009. The amount of tragic accidents has also increased.
In February 2015, a CSX train went off the rails in West Virginia and went up in an explosive mushroom cloud of smoke and flames. The train was hauling 107 cars of crude shale oil and forced a massive evacuation. Residents were also required to boil their water for several days due to the risk of a contaminated water supply.
In May 2014, a CSX train derailed in Lynchburg, Virginia, and caught fire. The freight train spilled 30,000 gallons of crude oil into the James River.
The National Transportation Safety Board proposed phasing out tens of thousands of older DOT-111 train car tankers, unless they are retro-fitted to meet new safety standards. The proposal also included changes to speed limits, better braking on train cars, and improved testing of volatile liquids transported by trains.
CSX has also run into a few problems at rail yards. That includes a derailment in upstate New York in August 2014 and a turpentine spill in 2012 near Jacksonville, Florida.
