NTSB to probe derailment of freight train carrying ethanol

NTSB to probe derailment of freight train carrying ethanol

The National Transportation and Safety Board will investigate the derailment of a freight train carrying ethanol in Columbus, Ohio, where flames spewed into the sky during the early-morning hours today.

The federal agency, which is charged with investigating crashes, announced that it had sent a team to the site where about 30 houses were evacuated and residents within a one-mile radius were advised to stay indoors.

According to Norfolk Southern, its train with two locomotives and 98 freight cars was traveling south when it derailed at about 2:05 a.m. EDT in a mainly industrial section of the city. Officials were still assessing how many cars went off the track, but the early estimate was from 11 to 13, railroad officials said in an email sent to reporters.

As of mid-morning, two tank cars carrying ethanol remained burning, the company said. Fire officials told reporters at the scene that they had decided to let the fire burn itself out rather than try to extinguish it.