NTSB releases preliminary report on East Palestine train derailment

We know for a fact that this derailment occurred at car number 23. This train had three locomotives, two at the head end. The lead locomotive had three crew members including one trainee. The third locomotive was between rail cars 109 and 110. There were also 149 rail cars on the train. Car number 23 was a hopper car which carried plastic pellets. It was the combination of the hot axle and the plastic pellets which started the initial fire.

Now the train passed three wayside defect detectors which identify overheated bearings and provide an audible warning to train crews. At each detector the recorded temperature of the bearing increased from 38 degrees Fahrenheit above the ambient temperature which at the time was 10 degrees Fahrenheit to 103 degrees above ambient just 10 miles later. Both of those temperatures are considered by Norfolk Southern to be non-critical. The critical threshold per Norfolk Southern is above 200 degrees ambient. Upon passing the third detector with a temperature of 253 degrees above ambient that's critical. 253 degrees above ambient. A critical audible alarm message sounded instructing the crew to slow and stop the train to inspect the hot axle and if warranted to set car number 23 out.

Now NTSB investigators at this time have not identified any operational issues with the wayside defect detectors but we're still looking at them. There's also no evidence of track defects. The engineer at the time was following another train and was already in dynamic braking to slow behind the train. So he increased the brake application to further slow and stop the train meaning he responded immediately. We have no evidence that the crew did anything wrong and during this deceleration the wheel bearing failed. Car number 23 derailed and the train initiated an emergency brake application and came to a stop. Now in total 38 cars derailed and a fire ensued which damaged an additional 12 cars.

On February 5th responders mitigated the fire but five five cars which are designated as 105 DOT 105 specification tank cars were located near the number 23 which derailed. So we had the five vinyl chloride cars four of them were at 26 27 28 and 29 and the fifth one was at 53. They were carrying well over 115,000 gallons of vinyl chloride. Now that continued to concern authorities because the temperature inside one of the tank cars was increasing which could result in a catastrophic explosion. The critical point is 180 degrees and at the time one of the cars was reading 140 degrees. As you know the responders then scheduled a controlled venting of the five vinyl chloride tank cars to release and burn the vinyl chloride. The NTSB had no role in the decision-making or carrying out of the vent and burn.

The Federal Railroad Administration has guidance for how to conduct vent and burns. So as part of our investigation we will evaluate whether the vent and burn was carried out according to that guidance and whether that guidance needs to be updated. Hi everyone George Stephanopoulos here thanks for checking out the ABC News YouTube channel. If you'd like to get more videos, show highlights and watch live event coverage click on the right over here to subscribe to our channel and don't forget to download the ABC News app for breaking news alerts. Thanks for watching.

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