June 19, 2013
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Article Photos: Common type of rail car has dangerous design flaw
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FILE - In this July 11, 2012 file photo, people watch flames shoot up from a freight train that derailed and some cars burst into flames in Columbus Ohio. The accident prompted the evacuation of a mile-wide area as firefighters and hazardous materials crews monitored the blaze. For two decades, one of the nation’s most common types of rail tankers, known as a DOT-111s, have been allowed to haul hazardous liquids from coast to coast even though transportation officials were aware of a dangerous design flaw that almost guarantees the car will tear open in an accident. The rail and chemical industries have committed to a safer design for new tankers, but they do not want to modify tens of thousands of existing cars. That’s despite a spike in the number of accidents. (AP Photo/Andrew Spear, File)
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