March 8 (UPI) — A CSX train derailed in West Virginia Wednesday morning, spilling diesel fuel and oil into the New River, the company said.
All crew members on board are being treated for non-life threatening injuries after the train’s four locomotives and nine empty coal cars derailed in Sandstone, W. Va. CSX said that while oil and fuel spilled into the river, there were no hazardous materials onboard the train.
The incident comes after a series of high-profile train derailments and incidents that have caused deaths and environmental harm.
A bipartisan group of politicians is demanding answers to the response to last month’s Norfolk Southern freight train crash in Ohio, which sent chemicals, including vinyl chloride, into the water table of East Palestine, located along the Pennsylvania border. Following the crash, the company performed a controlled release of the hazardous material to prevent the rail cars from exploding.
Pete Buttigieg, secretary of Transportation, tweeted Tuesday, saying, “Now, more than ever, it is time for stronger freight railroad accountability and safety.”
Rail safety is a pressing issue in other parts of the world, too. Earlier this month, 57 people died in a head-on collision between two trains in Greece. The accident has led to the resignation of the transport minister and the arrest of the stationmaster. And on Tuesday, two people were killed when a train derailed in Northern Egypt.
And earlier this week a U.S. train conductor — working for Norfolk Southern — was killed in Ohio when he was struck by a dump truck.
Meanwhile, Norfolk Southern CEO Alan Shaw is scheduled to testify before the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee on Thursday.
The hearing will look into the issue of environmental and community health in East Palestine and also whether freight train regulations need to be strengthened.