[Latest Update: The train had experienced problems BEFORE the derailment]
DAMN!
With ONE train wreck, the source of water for MOST of America’s agricultural products is contaminated. It would be hard to argue that this doesn’t look like environmental/political terrorism.
It would seem that the authorities chose the WORST way of dealing with carloads of toxic chemicals.
They decided to set the cargo ablaze, thereby releasing carcinogenic chemicals into the atmosphere.
The story about the “solution” here.
This story is of immediate concern to me – I have both family and friends living in the pathway of the westerly winds, including my eldest daughter, in Coraopolis, PA (just south and east of the train wreck).
The thing is, many of the fire departments along train routes are mostly volunteer. Their training ends up being what the town or city council can manage to find money for. With hazardous materials traveling via truck and rail, this is a disaster waiting to happen.
Perhaps one way to handle this is to set up a coalition: medical personnel, chemistry teachers, and firefighters, to educate the firefighters and other emergency workers, and protect both them, and the surrounding communities from harm. Set up an online course, with ongoing CEUs, to increase their ability to identify hazards and reduce contamination.
2 comments
If only those in authority showed a level of concern closer to your own.
Ace fills us in with reasonable conjecture as to why politics appears to be of greater concern to those jerks.
There’s a Real Environmental Catastrophe Unfolding In Ohio and the Media Is Downplaying It Or Just Not Reporting It for Some Reason
Author
The USA may have dodged a bullet, at least as the Ohio River is concerned. The main tributaries of the Ohio River (Monongahela and Allegheny rivers) are – apparently – far enough east of the derailment that the toxic chemicals may not affect the waters. And, the movement of air, which is quite rapid and turbulent in that region, may lessen any ill effects from the chemicals.
The rail systems need to be updated, AND the personnel that work them need to have better training on the subject of safety and toxic chemicals. The areas from the Mississippi through the East Coast, from the Great Lakes through the South Coast, contain MOST of the fresh water in the United States. In fact, the Great Lakes alone holds 1/5 of the WORLD’S fresh water. We cannot afford to see them polluted.
A GOOD use of the cell phone metadata records would be to:
a) Pinpoint just who was in the immediate area of the train path; anyone from out of state should be investigated first, as I do suspect that there may have been some vandalism/terrorist activity in this so-called accident.
b) Follow up on the suspects’ contacts; I have a suspicion that this was coordinated, not accidental.
And, while we are at it, get rid of that incompetent Buttegieg idiot. He’s been proven to be incapable of the job through several major crises. Let’s not give him another chance to screw up.