What Happened?
At about 5:44 p.m. local time, eastbound NS mixed-freight train NS-167, as it passed over a spring switch at milepost 139.90W, derailed 24 railcars. The derailed cars then collided with stationary westbound mixed freight train NS-33K on the NS Midwest Division, Southern West District, near Browns, Ill., which was holding in a siding adjacent to the derailment site. The derailed equipment from train NS-167 included three tank cars carrying hazardous materials, two tank cars containing molten sulfur that were breached and released product, and one tank car carrying denatured fuel ethanol, which released about 15 gallons of product. “Two NS crewmembers from train NS-33K were injured,” the agency said. Visibility conditions at the time of the accident were clear with no precipitation; the temperature was 88°F.
The crew of train NS-167, which was composed of two locomotives and 44 railcars (26 loaded railcars and 18 empty railcars), consisted of one engineer and one conductor. Shortly before the accident, a signal maintainer had conducted work on the spring switch. “About 40 minutes later, train NS-167 proceeded through the spring switch, the first train to do so after the maintenance was completed. As the train traversed through this switch, 24 of its railcars derailed,” according to the report.
The crew of train NS-33K, which was composed of two locomotives and 44 railcars (37 loaded railcars and 7 empty railcars), consisted of one engineer, one conductor, and one engineer trainee. “At the time of the accident, train NS-33K was stopped in a siding adjacent to the switch at milepost 139.90W,” NTSB said.
As the head end of train NS-167 traversed the spring switch at 47 mph, the railcars derailed, according to the report. “As a result, the train NS-33K engineer sustained a leg injury and was treated at a local hospital; the engineer trainee was injured when molten sulfur splashed onto him and was treated on scene and later airlifted to a trauma center,” according to the report.
While on scene, NTSB investigators inspected the railcars involved in the accident, examined conditions of the track and signals, reviewed event recorder data from the lead locomotive and the video from inward- and outward-facing image recorders, conducted a reenactment of the accident, tested the spring switch cylinder from the accident switch, and conducted interviews.
NTSB’s investigation is ongoing. “Future investigative activity will focus on testing and maintenance protocols of spring switches, and review of interdepartmental collaboration between the railroad’s Signals and Communications and Maintenance-of-Way departments, with emphasis on communication, joint procedures, training programs, and overall maintenance practices related to spring switch inspection and maintenance,” the agency reported.
Parties to the investigation include the Federal Railroad Administration (FRA); the Illinois Commerce Commission (ICC); NS; the International Association of Sheet Metal, Air, Rail and Transportation Workers (SMART), the Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers and Trainmen (BLET); the Brotherhood of Railroad Signalmen (BRS); and the Brotherhood of Maintenance of Way Employes Division (BMWED).
