BaltACD caldreamer When a conductor arrives at a yard and the train is terminating, he/she is required to turn over all of his paperwork to the yardmaster which includes the waybills showing the contents of each car and or container. The shipping papers for intermodal shipments, for the most part DO NOT SPECIFY the actual material being shipped. Freight All Kinds - is not a specific description of the contents of intermodal shipments.
caldreamer When a conductor arrives at a yard and the train is terminating, he/she is required to turn over all of his paperwork to the yardmaster which includes the waybills showing the contents of each car and or container.
The shipping papers for intermodal shipments, for the most part DO NOT SPECIFY the actual material being shipped. Freight All Kinds - is not a specific description of the contents of intermodal shipments.
Do we know for sure that this Perchloric acid was being handled as Freight of all Kinds? Or is this just an assumption? It seems a bit odd that dangerous hazmat could be shipped with the packaging and precautions left to the discretion of the shipper.
For now, UP crews carry paper copies of the train list. For mixed load containers the commodity is listed as "mixfrt." If the quantity requires placarding. The train list will have all the hazmat info listed. If the container has multiple types of hazmat, all will be listed.
If the car had not been placed in a train, then in the computer it would be in a track list inventory. Whether someone in the field had a paper copy at the time it happened would depend on if the car was listed to be switched by a yard job. Being in the yard it wouldn't take very long to get complete info on the car. Unless the computers were down.
Jeff
tree68 Euclid So, does the computer information about the train include the specific information to identify chemicals and their packaging, if any are being shipped on the train? Below a certain weight/volume, there is no requirement for placarding. As Balt points out, "freight all kinds" covers a lot of ground. "Brown" has more hazmat onboard than you might think.
Euclid So, does the computer information about the train include the specific information to identify chemicals and their packaging, if any are being shipped on the train?
Below a certain weight/volume, there is no requirement for placarding. As Balt points out, "freight all kinds" covers a lot of ground.
"Brown" has more hazmat onboard than you might think.
CSX has rules in place to prevent certain kinds of Inhalation Hazardous Materials in Reportable Quantities from being transported through Washington DC. Almost daily Conductors of the primary Northbound UPS train, upon going on duty at Richmond would call and report his train documentation has car(s) indicating that a commodity on the car is restricted through DC. The procedure in place was to get ahold of the Intermodal Dept. who would research the in depth billing of the offending car(s). In every case I was involved with, the offending commodity would end up being a couple of cases of the restricted commodity within a UPS trailer, thus falling far below the threshold of the requirement applying to Reportable Quantities of the commidity. The Conductor would be instructed to proceed with his train.
Never too old to have a happy childhood!
EuclidSo, does the computer information about the train include the specific information to identify chemicals and their packaging, if any are being shipped on the train?
Larry Resident Microferroequinologist (at least at my house) Everyone goes home; Safety begins with you My Opinion. Standard Disclaimers Apply. No Expiration Date Come ride the rails with me! There's one thing about humility - the moment you think you've got it, you've lost it...
dehusman caldreamer When a conductor arrives at a yard and the train is terminating, he/she is required to turn over all of his paperwork to the yardmaster which includes the waybills showing the contents of each car and or container. The UP hasn't used paper waybills since the late 1980's and the yard has all the "paperwork" for the train when it's still hundreds of miles away. Computers.
When a conductor arrives at a yard and the train is terminating, he/she is required to turn over all of his paperwork to the yardmaster which includes the waybills showing the contents of each car and or container.
The UP hasn't used paper waybills since the late 1980's and the yard has all the "paperwork" for the train when it's still hundreds of miles away.
Computers.
Dave H. Painted side goes up. My website : wnbranch.com
caldreamerWhen a conductor arrives at a yard and the train is terminating, he/she is required to turn over all of his paperwork to the yardmaster which includes the waybills showing the contents of each car and or container.
Since many containers are shipped under a "Freight All Kinds" rate, it would be likely that the shipper packaged the material at his plant and filled the container with the already packaged material. Except for placarding and hazmat instructions, the various roads involved in the move would not know the contents.
According to the various reports other cars which were not defined caught fire amd the car was sitting in its last position for a couple of hours.
Is this how it played out? Standing cut of well cars at west end of yard. Container somehow catches fire then explodes at around 1200 CDT. Witnessed by RR and visitors in tower. Catches fire to other equipment. Fire dept called and possible hazardous smoke cause evacuation. Fire out about 1700 CDT. Evacuation cancelled.
Was container on top or bottom? How and what other equipment affected?. When was cut last moved?
Standing car exploding - Need big 'splainin' Lucy!
Short of rough handling, sounds like this one was completely out of the control of the railroad. They don't put the contents in the containers.
Consider if it had happened near the rear of a high-priority IM train, running at 60+ MPH. The swath of exposure would be huge.
Just what is needed, another high viz explosion. Perchloric acid is evidently susceptible to high heat, although weather in NPLT has been generally mild September temperatures of late. So I guess containers as well as tank cars represent a problem with their commodities, although will be interesting to hear what triggered this event.
Local report
Rail car carrying acid explodes at Bailey Yard, downwind area evacuated for five hours - The North Platte Bulletin
Found some pictures
Train car carrying toxic perchloric acid explodes in Nebraska rail yard: Evacuation orders issued for four mile radius as huge plume of smoke fills sky above North Platte (dailymail.co.uk)
How did we miss this? Almost 8 hours without any posting
Explosion at world's largest railyard in Nebraska prompts evacuations because of heavy toxic smoke (msn.com)
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