Internal docs: Trainee was engineer of derailed train
Posted: Fri Jan 28, 2011 10:07 pm
http://www.argus-press.com/news_local/a ... 002e0.html SALLY YORK, Argus-Press Staff Writer |
VERNON TWP. — An internal Canadian National Railway memorandum dated one month before a train derailed Jan. 6 suggests the engineer assigned to work on the engine that crashed near Durand was a trainee, though a CN official vehemently denies the engineer was unqualified.
In a memo obtained through an anonymous source by The Argus-Press dated Dec. 7, Flint Trainmaster John Clark of CN Railway wrote: “Need Chris Garske and Chris Smith put on assignments as engineer trainees. Both I believe are not qualified outside of Pontiac yard.”
Chris Garske of Swartz Creek was the engineer on the train that derailed 12 rail cars near Pittsburg and Reed roads in Vernon Township, leaking hydrochloric acid and triggering the evacuation of 66 area residents.
CN Railway Spokesman Patrick Waldron refused to answer questions about the incident, citing an ongoing investigation, but he made the following statement:
“Any suggestion that the crew members involved in the Jan. 6 incident were not qualified to operate the train is mistaken and simply not true,” Waldron said Tuesday. “All CN crew members are qualified for their duties and are familiar with the territories on which they operate. That would include the two members who operated the train on Jan. 6.”
Both Garske and conductor Daniel Widger of Waterford are under investigation by CN Railway in connection with the derailment, according to a Jan. 10 letter on CN Railway letterhead obtained by The Argus-Press.
The letter, titled “Notice of Investigation,” identifies Garske and Widger by name and work position, and reads in part:
“The investigation is being held to develop the facts and to determine your responsibility, if any, and whether you violated any Company rules, regulations and/or polices in connection with an incident that occurred at approximately 1815 hours, Jan. 6, 2011, at or near Mileage 251.9 on the Flint Subdivision related to the derailment and damage of 12 rail cars and track damage and also for allegedly blocking Pittsburg Road, Mileage 251.73, Flint Subdivision in excess of 10 minutes.”
In the Jan. 10 letter, Garske and Widger are ordered to attend a formal hearing, at which they may call witnesses on their behalf, in the Grand Trunk Western Railroad Company administration building in Pontiac this month.
The Federal Railroad Administration is conducting its own investigation into the incident, FRA spokesperson Marquese Lewis said Tuesday. Previously, FRA officials said their investigation could take up to a year.
Garske, who worked for years as a conductor until he was promoted to engineer, is a member of United Transportation Union Local 1709. Local 1709 General Chairperson Jason Reineke declined comment Tuesday, saying he was not familiar with the details of the Jan. 6 train derailment.
The train had two crew members and was heading from Battle Creek to a CN Railway yard in Flat Rock when the cars derailed, Waldron previously told The Argus-Press. One of the derailed cars leaked hydrochloric acid, which can damage lungs, eyes, skin and other organs.
No serious injuries were sustained, and displaced residents along Reed and Pittsburg roads were allowed to return to their homes the day after the accident. The cleanup process, which included transferring hydrochloric acid from the punctured rail car to a tanker truck, took about four days.
VERNON TWP. — An internal Canadian National Railway memorandum dated one month before a train derailed Jan. 6 suggests the engineer assigned to work on the engine that crashed near Durand was a trainee, though a CN official vehemently denies the engineer was unqualified.
In a memo obtained through an anonymous source by The Argus-Press dated Dec. 7, Flint Trainmaster John Clark of CN Railway wrote: “Need Chris Garske and Chris Smith put on assignments as engineer trainees. Both I believe are not qualified outside of Pontiac yard.”
Chris Garske of Swartz Creek was the engineer on the train that derailed 12 rail cars near Pittsburg and Reed roads in Vernon Township, leaking hydrochloric acid and triggering the evacuation of 66 area residents.
CN Railway Spokesman Patrick Waldron refused to answer questions about the incident, citing an ongoing investigation, but he made the following statement:
“Any suggestion that the crew members involved in the Jan. 6 incident were not qualified to operate the train is mistaken and simply not true,” Waldron said Tuesday. “All CN crew members are qualified for their duties and are familiar with the territories on which they operate. That would include the two members who operated the train on Jan. 6.”
Both Garske and conductor Daniel Widger of Waterford are under investigation by CN Railway in connection with the derailment, according to a Jan. 10 letter on CN Railway letterhead obtained by The Argus-Press.
The letter, titled “Notice of Investigation,” identifies Garske and Widger by name and work position, and reads in part:
“The investigation is being held to develop the facts and to determine your responsibility, if any, and whether you violated any Company rules, regulations and/or polices in connection with an incident that occurred at approximately 1815 hours, Jan. 6, 2011, at or near Mileage 251.9 on the Flint Subdivision related to the derailment and damage of 12 rail cars and track damage and also for allegedly blocking Pittsburg Road, Mileage 251.73, Flint Subdivision in excess of 10 minutes.”
In the Jan. 10 letter, Garske and Widger are ordered to attend a formal hearing, at which they may call witnesses on their behalf, in the Grand Trunk Western Railroad Company administration building in Pontiac this month.
The Federal Railroad Administration is conducting its own investigation into the incident, FRA spokesperson Marquese Lewis said Tuesday. Previously, FRA officials said their investigation could take up to a year.
Garske, who worked for years as a conductor until he was promoted to engineer, is a member of United Transportation Union Local 1709. Local 1709 General Chairperson Jason Reineke declined comment Tuesday, saying he was not familiar with the details of the Jan. 6 train derailment.
The train had two crew members and was heading from Battle Creek to a CN Railway yard in Flat Rock when the cars derailed, Waldron previously told The Argus-Press. One of the derailed cars leaked hydrochloric acid, which can damage lungs, eyes, skin and other organs.
No serious injuries were sustained, and displaced residents along Reed and Pittsburg roads were allowed to return to their homes the day after the accident. The cleanup process, which included transferring hydrochloric acid from the punctured rail car to a tanker truck, took about four days.