Norfolk Southern agrees to implement derailment probe recommendations

By David Shepardson

WASHINGTON (Reuters) – Norfolk Southern (NYSE:) said on Wednesday it had agreed to implement a series of safety recommendations made by the National Transportation Safety Board following a February 2023 train derailment in East Palestine, Ohio that spilled toxic chemicals,

NTSB Chair Jennifer Homendy and other senior agency officials met in Atlanta on Wednesday with Norfolk Southern CEO Alan Shaw and other officials for about three hours after she had harshly criticized the railroad in June, saying executives had threatened the board, sought to manufacture evidence and failed to provide documents.

Homendy on Wednesday praised the railroad and said Shaw told her “he was interested in finding a way to exceed our recommendations,”

“I think there’s a real commitment to safety and working together to move forward,” she added.

Norfolk Southern said it had endorsed the national safety policy recommendations from the NTSB, which “align with safety initiatives currently underway at the railroad and designed around the principles of accident prevention, mitigation, and response.”

Shaw, in a statement, said “Norfolk Southern and the NTSB share the same goal when it comes to safety. We’re committed to taking action that addresses their recommendations and to becoming the gold standard of safety for the industry.”

The NTSB recommendations include improving rail defect detection systems, modernize nationwide tank car fleets, and getting real-time rail safety information to emergency responders.

Homendy said, “it’s never the NTSB against an entity or an entity against the NTSB, it’s important that we move forward together on safety.”

The NTSB in June found Norfolk Southern and its contractors did not need to vent and burn hazardous materials from tank cars. The derailment, which sparked calls for rail safety legislation, forced residents to temporarily abandon their homes after the train caught fire and released over 1 million gallons of hazardous materials and pollutants near Ohio’s border with Pennsylvania.

In May, Norfolk Southern agreed to pay a $15 million civil penalty and $57.1 million in past government cleanup costs. It also agreed to significant safety improvements and training, which includes installing additional devices to detect overheated wheel bearings early enough to prevent derailments.