Anacostia Rail prepares 260 emergency responders in hazmat safety

Three Anacostia Rail Holdings railroads this fall conducted railroad hazmat training for more than 260 members of Indiana and Minnesota fire department and emergency response organizations.

Chicago South Shore & South Bend Railroad, Louisville & Indiana Railroad and Northern Lines Railway conducted the training sessions in September and October in Michigan City, Franklin and Columbus, Indiana, and St. Cloud, Minnesota.

The training and equipment were arranged with support from CSX, BNSF Railway Co., Norfolk Southern Railway, Indiana Harbor Belt Railroad and the Firefighters Education and Training Foundation, Anacostia officials said in a press release.

"The purpose of the training is to help emergency responders understand rail safety, tank-car design, hazards and the support the railroad will provide in emergency situations," said Anacostia Chief Safety and Compliance Officer Tom Leopold.

The four- to six-hour training sessions offered participants both classroom education and hands-on learning.

"Participants even had the opportunity to board locomotives and practice leak abatement on a tank car," Leopold added.

Anacostia railroads have conducted 16 multi-day tank-car safety training sessions since they began the training program in 2007.