Crude Shipping

Warren Buffet, the sage of Omaha, who loves Obama and pays less in taxes than his secretary, owns a railroad that might become somewhat less profitable with regard to its lucrative business of hauling crude oil from Canada if the Keystone Pipeline were ever to be built.

But pipelines, of course, are environmentally damaging and dangerous.  Trains, on the other hand, are completely safe.

Normally, before retiring for the night, the train operator sets the hand brakes and leaves one locomotive running to power the air brakes that help hold the train in place on the gently sloping track. The next morning, the operator or a relief engineer starts up the train and continues on their way.

Last weekend, the system failed. The locomotive caught fire, so firefighters shut off the engine to stop the flames from spreading. That slowly disengaged the air brakes, and the driverless train carrying 72 cars of crude oil rolled downhill into the scenic lakeside town of Lac-Megantic, derailing, exploding and leveling the town center.

At least 13 people were killed and some 37 are still missing, according to Canadian police. Few residents expect any of the missing to be found alive.

Very sad.  We should remember this little town and these people to God in our prayers. 

This what I would call a freak accident.  It could happen in very few places under extremely unusual conditions.  Pipeline accidents are rare and unusual, too.  Nothing is risk-free.  Anything can happen, and, over time, about anything will.  C'est la guerre.  

I wonder if Buffet of Omaha is going to take some of his billions to clean up the mess in Lac-Megantic and compensate the citizens for their losses?  I would guess not, but I could be wrong.  It may not even be his train, though he's still profiting on the risks borne by these folks and others.  He probably doesn't see it that way. 

Railways as well as fire departments should probably review their procedures for dealing with fires on trains.  A checklist with the question,  IS THE TRAIN PARKED ON A HILL ABOVE A SHARP TURN IN A POPULATED AREA?, might be helpful.

Meanwhile, it seems like a pipeline might not such a bad idea.