1 February 2011
Probe Into Derailment Looks at
Possible Mechanical Cause
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Emergency crews and employees with CP Rail attend the scene of a train derailment North of
Innisfail. Several rail cars came off the tracks near the Canada Malting elevator forcing the closure of Highway 2A. |
Niobe Alberta - The investigation into a derailment near Innisfail that saw 16 cars jump the
rails is focusing on whether a mechanical problem is to blame.
"We're just going to have a look at some of the rail cars that were damaged in it and see if we can find anything," said James Carmichael, a senior
regional investigator for the Transportation Safety Board of Canada out of Calgary.
Canadian Pacific Railway Ltd. is also undertaking an investigation and plans to do a detailed inspection of one of the rail cars at its shops in Calgary.
"CP Rail is going to do a tear-down on the one car that they wanted to inspect and I've asked to attend.
So we'll be looking at that, probably later on this week," he said.
It's too early to say if that rail car triggered the 18 Jan 2011 derailment, he said.
"It definitely is a car of interest. Until we get a look at everything, it's pretty hard to make a concrete decision (on possible causes). In a lot of
these instances, it's more than one thing. The main issue may have been "Part A", but we look at why did Part A fail? We try to look deeper into it
and look at systemic causes, as well as part failure."
Investigators have been able to rule out problems with the rails or an obstruction on the tracks.
Sixteen cars left the tracks, five of them containing anhydrous ammonia, when the train derailed a couple of kilometres north of Innisfail, directly in front
of the Niobe grain elevator.
None of the tanker cars leaked the ammonia, which is a hazardous chemical used to make fertilizer.
The accident happened about 5:20 a.m. and forced the closure until the following evening of Highway 2A, which is only a few metres away from the rail line at
the accident site.
No residents were evacuated and those living nearby were able to get back to their homes.
Besides looking at mechanical parts, such as the trucks and wheels on rail cars, the board may look at other derailments.
"We had a similar incident in Airdrie last summer. So we may be able to find things on one derailment that will help us investigate the other one."
Thirty cars of a southbound CPR train left the tracks at 7:15 a.m. on 3 Aug 2010 just north of Airdrie.
Eight tanker cars that derailed at the rear of the train contain anhydrous ammonia.
A final report can take over a year to prepare depending on the investigation, although the safety board aims to bring them in sooner if it can.
Decisions have not been made yet on whether full board reports are needed for the Airdrie and Innisfail derailments.
Paul Cowley.
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