Search

Massive Fireball and Smoke Clouds Over Illinois Railyard After Fiery Train Derailment

Posted on 9/17/2019 by Lauren Scott

Smoke and fire could be seen as far away as downtown St. Louis after a tank car carrying methyl isobutyl ketone caught fire in Dupo, IL, resulting in area evacuations and power outages. However, no one was injured in the incident.

At approximately 12:45 p.m. on Sept. 10, 14 rail cars derailed while a train was being built for departure at Union Pacific’s Dupo Rail Yard. This caused a tank car holding methyl isobutyl ketone to catch fire. Methyl isobutyl ketone is an extremely flammable liquid that is typically used as a solvent.

Early video footage shows multiple rail cars on fire and possibly nearby water as well. About 1,000 people were reported to be without power as powerlines had to be de-energized while the fire burned.

Evacuations at the railyard, local schools, and beyond began at approximately 1:15 p.m. that day as emergency personnel worked to put out the fire. By 4 p.m., the fire was extinguished, power was restored and the evacuation order was lifted following an air quality test.

An environmental specialist has been assigned to the area to monitor the air quality until site remediation is complete.

State and Local officials will continue to investigate the rail yard for a possible cause of the derailment. Although a derailment can be the result of multiple factors—in 2016, AP reported that inspectors identified 24,000 "imperfections" along 58,000 miles of hazmat rail routes across forty-four states. Issues inspectors found included defective or missing track fasteners, loose or broken bolts, and cracked steel.

The incident is a stark reminder of the risks posed by hazardous materials in transport, and the importance of the work industry professionals do every day to keep these shipments safe. In an emergency, the information provided by shippers--from placards and hazmat labels to shipping papers and emergency response information--all play a crucial role in informing first responders' actions and protecting the public.

Convenient DOT Hazmat Training for Rail Shippers

If you are responsible for loading, unloading, and transloading tank cars, or if you ship, carry, or receive hazmat by rail, keep shipments rolling with Lion’s Hazmat Ground Shipper—Additional Rail Requirements online course. Designed to meet DOT’s function-specific hazmat training, the course covers the unique 49 CFR rules you must know to ship hazmat by tank car, freight container, IBC, and bulk or non-bulk packages by rail.
 

Tags: accident, derailment, fire, hazardous materials, hazmat, IL, Illinois, incident, Rail, train

Find a Post

Compliance Archives

Lion - Quotes

I like Lion's workshops the best because they really dig into the information you need to have when you leave the workshop.

Tom Bush, Jr.

EHS Manager

Excellent class, super instructor, very easy to follow. No rushing through material. Would like to take his class again.

Lawrence Patterson

EH&S Facility Maintenance & Security Manager

The instructor was very engaging and helped less experienced people understand the concepts.

Steve Gall

Safety Leader

The instructor was energetic and made learning fun compared to dry instructors from other training providers.

Andy D’Amato

International Trade Compliance Manager

Lion's course was superior to others I have taken in the past. Very clear in the presentation and the examples helped to explain the content presented.

George Bersik

Hazardous Waste Professional

Very witty instructor, made the long times sitting bearable. One of the few training courses I can say I actually enjoyed.

John Hutchinson

Senior EHS Engineer

These are the best commercial course references I have seen (10+ years). Great job!

Ed Grzybowski

EHS & Facility Engineer

I love that the instructor emphasized the thought process behind the regs.

Rebecca Saxena

Corporate Product Stewardship Specialist

I can take what I learned in this workshop and apply it to everyday work and relate it to my activities.

Shane Hersh

Materials Handler

The instructor was very very informative, helpful, understandable and pleasant. This course answered many questions I had, being new to this industry.

Frances Mona

Shipping Manager

Download Our Latest Whitepaper

Shipping papers are a crucial part of safely shipping hazardous materials. See the top 5 mistakes shippers make on shipping papers, and how to avoid them.

Latest Whitepaper

By submitting your phone number, you agree to receive recurring marketing and training text messages. Consent to receive text messages is not required for any purchases. Text STOP at any time to cancel. Message and data rates may apply. View our Terms & Conditions and Privacy Policy.