At around 4 a.m. Monday, a Norfolk Southern Corp. locomotive
derailed in Roanoke, spilling 1,500 gallons of diesel into the surrounding
area.[1]
Spokesman for Norfolk Southern, Robin Chapman, said that the
locomotive was 1 of 3 that went off the tracks.
The cause of the derailment was not immediately known but
according to Chapman, Norfolk Southern is investigating. Would society allow a
suspected murderer investigate his or her own alleged crime? Whatever fault may
be found, it’s highly unlikely that Norfolk Southern will point the finger at
itself.
This recent derailment is only the latest in a long series
of derailments by Norfolk Southern trains. In August, a Norfolk Southern train
derailed in Cramerton, N.C.[2]
Some of the cars that derailed (there were 31 cars that derailed in total[3])
were empty phosphoric acid containers, luckily for the surrounding community.
What might be an even more serious issue, because it points
to a business culture of disregard for the law, are the accusations that the Occupational
Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) have repeatedly made against Norfolk
Southern: the latter violates whistle-blower-protection laws by firing
employees who report injuries at work.[4]
For the third time in less than as many months, OSHA cited
Northern Southern Corp. for transgressing our country’s
whistle-blower-protection laws.
Since August 2011, OSHA has cited Norfolk Southern four
times for firing seven workers who reported injuries on the job.[5]
What all of this evidence leads up to is a company who is
more concerned with profits than the safety of its employees or the communities
through which its trains travel. These are the kind of companies that must be
shut down, companies that have proven time after time that the only law they
respect is the law of competition and money-making, not the laws of our nation.
Luckily, there were no injuries in the most recent
derailment. But given enough time, companies like Norfolk Southern are bound to
do worse harm than spilling 1,500 gallons of diesel, bad as this incident is.
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