Chemical fire at Kentucky train derailment expected to keep burning far longer than expected

[Emily]

Hundreds evacuated; contract workers for the railroad were severely burned after a welding arc may have ignited the butadiene. The article says these were highly skilled welders so it should be investigated why they had incomplete information about the dangers. Commerce was being interrupted by the closure of the Ohio river, the rail line and nearby highways, but that should never be an excuse for endangering workers, which frequently makes a disaster even worse for everyone.

http://www.oregonlive.com/today/index.ssf/2012/11/chemical_fire_at_kentucky_trai.html

Published: Thursday, November 01, 2012, 11:49 AM Updated: Thursday, November 01, 2012, 11:49 AM
[snip]
Emergency officials said they were given inaccurate information about how much of the flammable chemical, butadiene, remained in an overturned tanker car.
[snip]
Hundreds of thousands of gallons of water were being sprayed onto the burning car and two derailed cars within a few feet in an attempt to keep the cars cool, officials said. Those cars contain hydrogen fluoride, a colorless gas with a sharp, pungent, irritating odor, according to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. Inhalation can cause severe respiratory damage. It is used in the glass etching, electronic and chemical industries.

"This is as bad as it gets as far as a haz-mat incident, if it were to be released," said Art Smith, an emergency coordinator with the EPA. "And we're all very concerned about that."

Smith also said the EPA is monitoring water in the nearby Salt River because a rush of possibly contaminated water is flowing into it from the scene. Officials hurriedly erected a dam Thursday to try to contain the water....