Three trains collide in Pennsylvania, USA, causing diesel leak
Three trains collided and derailed in the town of Lower Sauken along the Lehigh River in eastern Pennsylvania at around 7:15 am local time on March 2, but no injuries were reported, Reference News reported, citing the Associated Press on March 2. The accident caused some cars scattered along the river, and at least one car fell into the river.
Preliminary information indicates that an eastbound train struck another train that was stopped on the same track, the National Transportation Safety Board said. Part of the vehicle careered into an adjacent track and was struck by a train traveling west, the board said. All three trains were owned by Norfolk Southern. The collision derailed an unknown number of cars.
Local officials said the accident caused diesel oil to leak into the river, and one of the derailed carriages also caused a leak of polypropylene plastic particles. Norfolk Southern said a "small diesel spill" was a "common occurrence" in such incidents and had been contained with a containment boom that would be cleaned up later. Plastic particles, mostly on the ground, "will also be cleaned up", the company said. The company also posted on its social media platform: "There was no threat to the public, no hazardous material from the carriages and no reports of injuries to our staff."
This is not the first accident of its kind for Norfolk Southern. In February 2023, a Norfolk Southern freight train derailed in East Palestine, Ohio, resulting in a "poison train" incident, Chinanews reported. The accident led to the leakage of toxic substances such as vinyl chloride and forced the evacuation of a large number of people. After the accident, many people continued to suffer from health problems, and the accident also posed a serious threat to the local environment.
"People are still concerned about how the cleanup is going and the long-term health effects," Ohio Republican Senator RON Vance said in a recent interview.A year after the accident, US President Joe Biden visited the site of a "poison train" derailment in the town of East Palestine, Ohio, in February 2024, expressing support for local people and urging stronger rail safety supervision. As previously reported by Xinhua News Agency, many affected residents were not impressed by the belated visit. The Biden motorcade had just pulled into the eastern Palestinian town when it was met by demonstrators, some carrying placards criticizing the government's response to the accident.