Kind looking for answers on rail safety in severe weather

Congressman cites recent spill in request

Winter is coming.  Are the rails safe? 

That’s what La Crosse congressman Ron Kind wants to know. 

Kind has sent a letter to BNSF, requesting policy answers on operating trains in severe weather. 

He cites the derailment in September near Ferryville as an example of a potentially dangerous derailment that appeared to be caused by adverse conditions.  In that case, massive rains washed out the BNSF tracks, causing cars to to skip the tracks and spill a thousand gallons of diesel. 

Kind wants to know, among other things, what the severe weather policy is for the rail company, how BNSF coordinates with local emergency management in bad weather, and if anything has changed since the Ferryville spill. 

“Given the severe weather Wisconsin has already seen this year and the upcoming winter weather, it is vital that BNSF assures…that they are taking all necessary action to operate safely and prevent derailments,” he said.

Kind wants answers from BNSF in ten days.