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Article from New Orleans Times Picayune via dogcaught.com 2 men killed, 1 injured in train-truck collision Tanker had just taken on fuel at Chalmette refinery Saturday, June 26, 2004 By Steve Cannizaro, Karen Turni Bazile and Sandra Barbier A Norfolk Southern Railway train tore through a gasoline tank truck at a Chalmette railroad crossing Friday, sparking a deadly explosion that horrified onlookers and sent a thick ball of black smoke into the air. The driver of the truck died at the scene; one of two men severely burned inside the locomotive died later Friday at Charity Hospital in New Orleans. The other man on the train was flown Friday evening to the burn unit at Baton Rouge General Hospital, a Charity spokeswoman said. The truck driver, Henry Blount, 55, of Holden, had compiled a perfect driving record for Lard Oil of Denham Springs, the shaken company president said. Dennis Vinson, 58, of Covington, the engineer on the train, also died, said St. Bernard Parish Coroner Bryan Bertucci. A Norfolk Southern spokeswoman had said earlier Friday that Vinson and the train's conductor, Anthony J. "Tony" Mills, 58, formerly of Chalmette and now living in the Carriere, Miss., area, were severely burned inside the locomotive cab. Both were initially taken to Charity Hospital in critical condition. Blount was hauling more than 8,000 gallons of gasoline he had just picked up at 10 a.m. at the Chalmette Refining plant when he drove the tanker north on Paris Road across the tracks that run parallel to West St. Bernard Highway and into the path of the train, which struck it on the left side, authorities said. State Police said they are investigating the specific cause of the crash. No crossing gate Although the crossing is marked with signals, it doesn't have an automatic arm that blocks traffic. There is a traffic light at the intersection of Paris Road and West St. Bernard Highway, but authorities said that, even when the light is green, trains have the right of way. Blount, who was married with two adult children, was killed in the inferno, authorities said. Flames from leaking gasoline leaped more than 50 feet into the air, witnesses said. The billowing black smoke hung in the air and could be seen across the metro New Orleans area. St. Bernard Sheriff Jack Stephens said he saw the smoke from Shell Beach, more than 20 miles away in eastern St. Bernard. No evacuation order was issued during the fire, although afterward, because of high benzene readings from the spilled gasoline, some nearby businesses were asked to close. Johnny Milazzo, president of Lard Oil, said he was shocked by Blount's death. "He had a perfect record with our organization and this is a very difficult thing for me to try to accept," Milazzo said. "We're struggling to understand what happened." 85 fight the fire Nearly 50 St. Bernard Parish firefighters, aided by 35 employees of two oil refineries trained in industrial fires, battled the four-alarm blaze for about an hour before it was extinguished. But the eastbound lanes of St. Bernard Highway near the intersection remained closed through the evening as crews continued working to contain the spilled gasoline. A third railroad employee, brakeman Charles La Bella, 58, of Chalmette, jumped to safety from the train, authorities said. The locomotive was destroyed, railroad officials said. Witnesses described the crash and resulting blaze as surreal, saying they weren't sure whether to try and help or run away for their own safety. Ronnie Alonzo, a St. Bernard School Board administrator, said he was standing outside the school district's administration building less than a block east of the scene when he heard a long train whistle that drew his attention to the intersection seconds before the train hit the center of the tanker. "It was slow motion, like something out of a movie. It kind of lifted (the tanker) up and turned it on its side," said Alonzo. "And as it turned on its side, the tanker cracked. You could see the liquid coming out and seconds after the liquid came out, flames started. "We were torn about running in two directions: one to run to help and one to run away. Within a 10-to-15-second time frame, it blew. The flames shot 50 to 60 feet into the air," hitting the overhead electrical power lines, Alonzo said. "The fuel was dumping into the ditch and igniting, and it started coming toward us in the ditch. A lot of people didn't know which way to run." One local resident said she was frightened by the smoke after hearing the explosion. "The black smoke was everywhere," said Sheila Wallace, who lives just west of the accident site. "We were really scared." Power cut off St. Bernard Parish Fire Chief Thomas Stone had praise for firefighters. "It was extremely difficult," he said. "The heat was tremendous and they had to get close to it to lay their lines to protect rail cars." Stone also said much of the load of gasoline went into a ditch along West St. Bernard Highway, which was fortunate because the fuel could have easily flooded the streets and run toward businesses, creating a greater danger, he said. Noting that the Paris Road ferry and part of St. Bernard Highway were closed virtually all day, Stone said the fire "affected thousands of people metrowide." Entergy officials said about 850 customers, including the nearby St. Bernard Parish Prison, were without electricity for about five hours. The prison had generators to produce electricity, but didn't have the power for air conditioning, authorities said. State Police were on the scene, along with state Department of Environmental Quality officials and an environmental cleanup company. 'I had to go back' Felton LaFrance, 41, of Pointe a la Hache, was in a car in a lane next to the tanker truck, waiting for the light to change at the intersection of Paris Road and St. Bernard Highway. "The light changed and the 18-wheeler went across the road and the train struck," said LaFrance, who was with his wife and son. He said he heard the train's whistles and bells and he accidentally drove into a ditch trying to get away from the impact and heat, but ran back to help men he saw were on fire. "I pulled them to the water in the ditch," he said, and said he tried to help one man whose hair and body were burning. "When I saw them people on fire, I had to go back. They were hollering for help. I had to go back," LaFrance said.
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