(The following story by Pat Reavy appeared on the Deseret Morning News website on May 5.)
SALT LAKE CITY, Utah — In an effort to open better communication between firefighters and the rail industry, a hazardous-materials training session was held at a Midvale rail yard Wednesday.
One of the goals was to familiarize firefighters with the different types of rail cars and locomotives and what to do in the event of a leak or wreck.
The training was scheduled to wrap up today.
John Stolarczyk, vice president of safety and environment for Genesee & Wyoming Inc., said the idea for a training session started when the fire marshall for Midvale stopped by the rail yard near 7300 South and 600 West to see what chemicals were stored there.
Stolarczyk said it turned out the fire marshall was not aware of the chemicals that were there, and they both decided a refresher course for firefighters on rail-car safety would be beneficial.
On Wednesday, about 50 firefighters from six agencies throughout Salt Lake County spent more than two hours in the classroom — followed by another two hours of hands-on training — to learn everything from the construction of rail cars to the contents they carry.
“We want them to understand the technical aspect of a rail car and what they’re dealing with,” Stolarczyk said.
Even if the stenciling on a rail car is unclear or a train has wrecked and its not possible to read the signs posted on it, Stolarczyk said firefighters should be able to get an idea of its contents simply by the car’s design.
“We’re learning how the cars are put together, how the valves are put together . . . ” said Midvale Fire Chief Stephen Higgs. “We’re learning what we can do to keep ourselves out of trouble.”
In March, a 13,500 gallon rail tanker containing a cocktail of various acids leaked from its tanker while sitting in a rail yard near 2200 South and 600 West. The leak forced the evacuation of thousands, and parts of I-15 and I-80 had to be closed several hours.
Although that car was in the Midvale yard for 12 hours before being sent to South Salt Lake, Higgs said the training was not in response to that incident.
In addition to the tanker cars, Higgs said the session included training on diesel locomotives, which also need to be handled carefully because of the amount of fuel they carry and electricity they generate.
Higgs said it was easy for railway workers to recognize certain problems because they deal with the trains everyday. He said dealing with hazardous-materials leaks from rail cars was very rare for firefighters, especially when the amount of hazardous materials shipped on trains every day was taken into account.
There were many more accidents on the freeways involving hazardous materials than the railways, he said.
Another 50 firefighters were expected to attend today’s training.