Second Norfolk train wreckage cleaned up

Crash triggers new concerns over rail safety, company

The wreckage from a Norfolk Southern train derailment Saturday in Ohio — the second such crash in the state in just more than a month — was cleaned up by Sunday afternoon as investigators set to determine what led 28 cars to leave the tracks.

No hazardous materials were involved in the derailment, which happened around 5 p.m. near Springfield, Ohio, about 80 miles northeast of Cincinnati, officials said.

The train of 212 cars was traveling from Bellevue, Ohio, to Birmingham, Ala., and was operated by Norfolk Southern, the same rail company that has faced scrutiny after a devastating train derailment last month in East Palestine, Ohio.

That derailment led to concerns over air and water quality after a controlled burn of toxic chemicals that authorities believed posed the risk of an explosion. The crash Saturday renewed concerns about rail safety and about Norfolk Southern’s performance.

“This truly is outrageous,” Mike Turner, a Republican congressman from Ohio, said on “Meet the Press” on Sunday.

Sen. Sherrod Brown, D - Ohio, said on “This Week” on Sunday that the train that derailed Saturday was at least 50 cars longer than the train that derailed in East Palestine.

“The railroad’s got a lot of questions they’ve got to answer and they really haven’t really done it very well yet,” he said.

County and state health and environmental officials at a news conference Sunday said the derailment near Springfield posed no risk to the public.

Officials had issued a precautionary shelter-inplace order for residents within 1,000 feet of the crash site, which was lifted early Sunday.