Derailment Report Released

The Transportation Safety Board of Canada (TSB) released a report today, Nov. 7, that says the condition of a tank car was the reason for the Cape Breton and Central Nova Scotia Railway train derailment near Avondale, Pictou Co., on June 13, 2010.

The Department of Transportation and Infrastructure Renewal asked the TSB, an independent agency, to investigate the derailment as the department administers the provincial Railways Act.

The board found that the main cause of the derailment was the mechanical condition of one of the tank cars, from an abnormal repair practice. Some welds of a body centre plate of the tank car were not machined or ground smooth during a 2006 repair. The rough weld affected the car's turning ability. The board said it appears to have been a unique situation.

The report states that train operation met all company and regulatory requirements and did not play a role in the accident.

Although not related to the cause of the accident, the TSB issued three rail safety letters from safety inspection of dangerous goods tanks cars, the reliability of rail profiles measured by geometry cars and use of low-profile joint bars.

In June 2010, a Cape Breton and Central Nova Scotia Railway freight train derailed, damaging 15 rail cars, including eight tank cars, with seven loads of liquefied petroleum gas and one residue hydrogen peroxide. There were no injuries or release of dangerous goods. Ten residences were evacuated about a week.

The complete report can be viewed online at www.tsb.gc.ca/ .