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NTSB to rule on cause of Graettinger train wreck

GRAETTINGER — Federal accident investigators are close to determining what caused a fiery March 10, 2017, crash of an ethanol train in Palo Alto County.

The early morning incident started a fire that burned for about 36 hours and prompted the evacuation of three homes within half a mile of the crash site near Graettinger. No one was injured.

The National Transportation Safety Board announced Tuesday that it will meet at 9:30 a.m. Oct. 30 in Washington, D.C., to determine the probable cause of the crash. During that session, the board will also offer safety recommendations aimed at preventing similar accidents in the future.

The train wreck occurred southeast of Graettinger near a bridge that carries the Union Pacific Railroad tracks over Jack Creek.

The derailment happened at 12:50 a.m., according to a preliminary report released by the NTSB last year.

It was reported to local emergency responders by someone who saw flames near the tracks.

The train consisted of three locomotives, 98 tank cars full of ethanol and two buffer cars, according to the safety board. Buffer cars are train cars, usually box cars, that are positioned between tank cars full of hazardous materials and the locomotives to help shield the train crew from fires, explosions and leaks.

The safety board previously reported that the lead locomotive had an event recorder, which saves data much like the black boxes on an airliner. Federal investigators said that event recorder showed the train was moving at 30 mph, which is the speed limit for that section of track.

The event recorder also revealed an emergency application of the air brakes, without any action by the train crew, at 12:50 a.m. The brakes activated shortly after the locomotives and 20 cars crossed the bridge.

The National Transportation Safety Board reported that 20 cars went off the tracks. Fourteen of those cars ruptured and released about 322,000 gallons of ethanol.

The derailment ripped up about 400 feet of track and destroyed the bridge.

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