A couple of evenings ago I expressed my concerns about the possibility of train derailments in Fort Wayne while not even taking myself very seriously. But a faithful reader emailed a newspaper article to me today that set my alarm bells ringing again. The article is from the Akron, Ohio "Beacon Journal" and among other things shows the most likely route of that train that derailed in East Palestine, which began in Madison, Illinois and was supposed to end in Conway, PA, a suburb of Pittsburg. The route passed through Cleveland and several other large cities, and, you guessed it, Fort Wayne, on the line that runs right beside my apartment complex. Two other pieces of information in that article caught my attention. First, it seems that railroads do not disclose information about trains hauling toxic materials, apparently to avoid the information falling into the hands of terrorists. I can't help thinking it might also be to avoid the information falling into the hands of potential protesting citizens. Just a guess of course. The other fact that came out was that one of the cars on the train was filmed, on railroad equipment along the route, showing first a hot box on an axle then a glow then actual flames. I don't know why that information wasn't sent to the train in time to allow them to stop safely. Just more to think about when I can't fall asleep. When I hear those lonesome whistles in the night I'll tell myself they're hauling cars and coal and nothing really dangerous.
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