Freight train carrying hazardous chemicals derails in US
About 50 carriages of a freight train carrying hazardous substances derailed in the US state of Ohio, AP reports, citing local authorities. According to a statement by National Transportation Safety Board spokesman Michael Graham, after some of the train cars derailed, they were engulfed in flames. Norfolk Southern said 20 of the more than 100 railcars were carrying vinyl chloride, a toxic and flammable substance whose combustion products pose an environmental hazard. Currently, experts are trying to determine which of the cars containing hazardous materials were damaged.
A federal investigation has been launched into the incident; air monitoring at the scene does not show dangerous indicators, the agency writes. However, local authorities declared a state of emergency and decided to evacuate the population.
Source: Telegram channel “House of Cards”
