Tie failure likely behind Oregon oil train spill

OREANDA-NEWS. June 07, 2016. A Union Pacific crude train derailment on 3 June near Mosier, Oregon, was likely caused by the failure of a fastener that connects the rail to the railway tie, the company said today.

Union Pacific stressed that the conclusion was preliminary, however, and that the investigation is ongoing. A final report is expected next week.

Four of the sixteen crude rail cars that derailed caught fire, leading to a small ground fire, the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) said. The fire was extinguished at 5am ET on 4 June but "a rainbow sheen of oil" was seen coming from the site on the Columbia river. The derailment occurred very near the crossing of Rock creek, a tributary to the Columbia river.

Union Pacific did not have an estimate of how much crude spilled, but said that it was a small amount. Thirteen of the cars remain on the scene today, the company said.

The 96-car train was headed to US Oil's's 43,500 b/d refinery in Tacoma, Washington. The cars were CPC-1232 tank cars, the current standard for crude service.

The track was repaired yesterday and inspections have been conducted throughout the night. Trains are being allowed to move on the tracks, but at 10-miles an hour as a precaution, Union Pacific said.

Mosier is on the Columbia river about 68 miles east of Portland. The area is home to federally-listed endangered fish including juvenile coho salmon and winter steelhead. The incident also comes at a critical time for sockeye salmon as they migrate through this stretch of the Columbia river.

The accident is the 11th fiery crude train derailment since a runaway Bakken unit train slammed into Lac Megantic, Quebec, in July 2013, killing 47 people. The last oil train fire occurred in May 2015 in North Dakota.