Graniteville, South Carolina train disaster
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| Date | January 6, 2005 |
|---|---|
| Time | Around 2:40 am |
| Location | Graniteville, South Carolina |
| Country | United States |
| Operator | Norfolk Southern Railway |
| Type of incident | Collision |
| Cause | Incorrectly aligned railroad switch |
| Statistics | |
| Trains | 2 |
| Deaths | 9 |
| Injuries | 250+ |
The Graniteville train crash was an American rail disaster that occurred on January 6, 2005, in Graniteville, South Carolina. At roughly 2:40am EST, two Norfolk Southern trains collided near the Avondale Mills plant in Graniteville. Nine people were killed and over 250 people were treated for toxic chlorine exposure. The accident was determined to be caused by a misaligned railroad switch.
On January 5, 2005, NS local train P22 (lead engine GP59 #4622) began its daily operation. The regularly assigned conductor and engineer were both off duty on January 5, and the jobs were filled for the day from a list of available standby employees. At the end of their scheduled run, train P22's crew parked the train on a siding near the Avondale Mills plant. The train crew contacted the local train dispatcher at 7:53PM and 7:54PM to clear two track warrants that were protecting train P22's use of the tracks. Although the railroad switch for the Avondale Mills siding was supposed to be set for mainline operation before P22's crew departed for the night, the train's brakeman later told the NTSB that he was "not 100 percent sure" he had aligned the switch for mainline operation, and that he "might have made a mistake." No train operated through the area or used the affected tracks for the rest of the day.
At 2:38AM Eastern Standard Time on January 6, 2005, NS freight train 192 (lead engine SD60 #6653) approached Graniteville at approximately 48 miles per hour. Train 192 entered emergency braking when the engineer saw the improperly aligned switch, but there was not sufficient distance for Train 192 to stop. At 2:39AM, Train 192 was diverted by the improperly lined switch onto the siding and collided with P22. The collision derailed both lead engines, 16 of 192's 42 freight cars, and one of P22's freight cars.
Train 192 was transporting chlorine gas, sodium hydroxide and cresol. One of 192's tank cars (loaded with 90 tons of chlorine) ruptured, releasing about 60 tons of the gas. About 30% of the load was recovered by industrial responders. Nine people died (eight at the time of the accident, one later as a result of chlorine inhalation), and at least 250 people were treated for chlorine exposure. In total, 5,400 residents within one mile (1.6 km) of the crash site were forced to evacuate for nearly two weeks while HAZMAT teams and cleanup crews decontaminated the area.
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