(The following story by Brandy Warren and Alex Davis appeared on The Courier-Journal website on January 23.)
LOUISVILLE, Ky. — Tim Bowlin usually drives Ky. 1020 to go between his home in Hillview and his job in Shepherdsville.
But in the week since a CSX train derailed along that road in Bullitt County, he’s had to take alternate routes that often are jammed with traffic.
Yesterday, CSX gave Bowlin $100 for his trouble and issued checks to hundreds of others who have been inconvenienced.
“This will cover all of my mileage,” said Bowlin, who was among those who waited in line for up to four hours to file a claim with the CSX Outreach Center at the Hearthstone Inn and Suites in Brooks.
The rail company is offering $100 checks to any Bullitt County household inconvenienced by the derailment.
To get the money, residents need to bring a valid driver’s license or other proof of residence and a utility bill that identifies them as the head of household. They then must explain to CSX staff how their lives have been disrupted, company spokesman Gary Sease said.
“This was a significant disruption last week,” Sease said. “We want to make amends for that.”
Since making the offer on Sunday, Sease said, the company has handled about 1,800 claims, including some for more than $100 when people can prove a greater disruption. Recipients don’t have to sign any type of waiver.
“This is just to compensate them for their inconvenience,” Sease said.
Meeting people’s needs
CSX has been handing out checks to individuals and businesses directly affected by last Tuesday’s accident since the day after it occurred, but the $100 offers are a new twist.
Bob Sullivan, a CSX spokesman, said the company’s reimbursement policy after evacuations differs depending on the situation.
“The idea is to get out there and make it very easy for people to contact us,” Sullivan said. “We want them to know that right from the start, we are going to meet their needs.”
In this case, almost any of the more than 25,000 households in Bullitt County could be eligible.
And experts say that although CSX’s offer won’t put a halt to lawsuits — one already has been filed — it might help prevent permanent damage to the company’s image.
“Study after study shows that when there are crises or disasters, and companies run to the crisis, there is much less likelihood of liability,” said Richard Levick of Levick Strategic Communications in Washington, which provides crisis counseling to corporations and governments around the world.
The reimbursements could make CSX’s reputation in the community stronger in years to come, agreed John Burnett, a professor of marketing at the University of Denver.
Extensive inconvenience
By 2:30 yesterday afternoon, the wait for Bullitt residents trying to file a claim was about four hours, prompting some to say they’d try again later.
Vernon Crawford, who lives on Pine Valley Drive, said he waited 21⁄2 hours for his check. He said he’s put more mileage on his truck because roads have been closed.
“Everyone I know has been inconvenienced by this,” he said.
Cindie Terzo, who lives in the Tanyard Springs subdivision, said in an interview that she won’t be among those seeking a check.
The daughter of a retired CSX worker, she said the company is doing enough to make up for the derailment, and it didn’t cause her any inconvenience.
“Those who are entitled to it, they need to be reimbursed,” Terzo said.