Crews say trains leaving stations with hazardous materials that are not mentioned on cargo list

Railroad union members in Minnesota say BNSF Railway trains are hauling hazardous waste materials that are not listed on the train's cargo list, which violates federal regulations and puts communities at risk because emergency personnel responding to an accident would not be fully informed of the dangers involved, Dan Gunderson reports for Minnesota Public Radio. At least 18 times over the past three years trains left Minneapolis with hazardous cargo not listed on the manifest, train crews said in complaints filed with the Federal Railroad Administration.

"In one case, a train traveled more than 20 miles through the western suburbs with six carloads of anhydrous ammonia, a toxic corrosive gas used as a farm fertilizer, before the train crew knew the chemical was on the train, a complaint said," Gunderson writes. "In another, a complaint said a train traveled about 90 miles west to Willmar before its cargo list was corrected to show an extra car of ammonia." (MPR map)

Dave Christianson, senior rail planner for the  Minnesota Department of Transportation calls the train manifest "the Bible" for first responders, Gunderson writes. He told Gunderson that an inaccurate manifest "basically nullifies any preparation that has ever been done to protect the public and to respond to a catastrophic incident. That document is the key to how emergency responders react to the accident." (Read more)