LYNCHBURG, Va. — Several CSX train cars carrying crude oil derailed and caught fire Wednesday along the James River, with three black tankers ending up in the water and leaking some of their contents.
Nearby buildings were evacuated for a time in downtown Lynchburg. Officials said there were no injuries, and the city on its website and Twitter said firefighters decided to let the fire burn out.
Three or four tankers were breached on the 15-car train that CSX said was on its way from Chicago to an unspecified destination. Most of the cars were knocked off the tracks.
There have been eight significant oil train accidents in the U.S. and Canada in the past year involving trains hauling crude oil, including several that resulted in spectacular fires, according to the National Transportation Safety Board.
“This is another national wake-up call,” said Jim Hall, a former safety board chairman. “We have these oil trains moving all across the United States through communities and the growth and distribution of this has all occurred, unfortunately, while the federal regulators have been asleep.”
