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Home » Climate + Energy » Oil Train Explosions: A Timeline in Pictures

Oil Train Explosions: A Timeline in Pictures

SwatchJunkies

At 7:15 this morning, yet another crude oil train erupted into an inferno, this time near a small town in central North Dakota. As these wildly dangerous trains continue to explode—at least 10 in the last two years—it’s become challenging to keep track of them all. So, for the record, we’ve assembled here a pictorial timeline of North America’s bomb trains.

Last week, the Obama administration adopted new regulations that will phase out many of the most hazardous tank cars over the next five to six years. The regulations also substantially reduce public oversight of train movements and industry behavior.

We will update this post as new explosions occur.

Money, Mississippi: April 30, 2017

Mosier, Oregon: June 3, 2016

Mosier derailment, by Columbia Riverkeeper, used with permission.
Mosier Derailment by Columbia Riverkeeper (Used with permission.)

Heimdal, North Dakota: May 6, 2015

[sightline-embed]

Gogama, Ontario: March 7, 2015

05_07_2015OntarioDerailment
Close up overhead view of derailed ruptured tank cars on fire in Ontario, Canada (March 7, 2015) by Transportation Safety Board of Canada (license) (Used with permission.)

Galena, Illinois: March 5, 2015

Galena_OilTrain_Derailment

Mount Carbon, West Virginia: February 16, 2015

20150217_Crude Oil train Derailment_0090_1_2
Kanawha River, West Virginia, Crude Oil Derailment by Paul Corbit Brown (Used with permission.)

Timmins, Ontario: February 16, 2015

Timmins, ONT, derailment
80 km south of Timmins, Ontario, Oil Train Derailment by Transportation Safety Board of Canada (license) (Used with permission.)

Lynchburg, Virginia: April 30, 2014

James River, oil train derailment,oil trains
James River oil train derailment by Waterkeeper Alliance Inc. used under CC BY-NC-ND 2.0

Plaster Rock, New Brunswick: January 8, 2014

NewBrunswickDerailment2
Derailed CN rail cars near Plaster Rock, New Brunswick, Canada by Transportation Safety Board of Canada (license) (Used with permission.)

Casselton, North Dakota: December 30, 2013

North Dakota Oil Train Derailment
Destroyed Oil Tank Cars In North Dakota Derailment by Ann Arbor Miller/Greenpeace (license) (Used with permission.)

Aliceville, Alabama: November 8, 2013

Oil train derailment and river contamination, Aliceville, AL (2). Photo by John L. Wathen, used with permission.
Oil train derailment and river contamination, Aliceville, AL (2). by John L. Wathen (Used with permission.)

 Lac-Mégantic, Quebec: July 6, 2013

Train derailment
Lac-Mégantic Derailment by TSBCanada (All rights reserved, used with permission.)

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SwatchJunkies

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Eric de Place

Eric de Place spearheaded Sightline’s work on energy policy for two decades.

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Keiko Budech

Keiko Budech, senior communications associate, promotes Sightline's work to the diverse audiences of Northwest media and decisionmakers.

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Sightline Institute is an independent, nonpartisan, nonprofit think tank providing leading original analysis of democracy, forests, energy, and housing policy in the Pacific Northwest, Alaska, British Columbia, and beyond.

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