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HomeMy WebLinkAboutMinutes - July 25, 2023 SSLodi Fire Department Railroad Emergency Response DEPUTY CHIEF OF OPERATIONS TIM ORTEGEL Types of Railroad Emergencies Derailments Train Collisions With other Trains, Vehicles, Pedestrians Hazardous Materials Release From Railcars, Kinder Morgan Pipeline Derailments Between 2001 and 2010 there were 58,299 train accidents in the United States. Of those, 54,889 were derailments. This means 94% of the railway accidents were derailments Most derailments end up being relatively benign, even one car coming off the track is considered a derailment According to the Federal Rail Administration, track failure accounts for roughly 45% of all Train accidents. Threats the Rail poses to the citizens of Lodi Hundreds of commodities are transported through Lodi on the tracks Derailment in downtown could be a significant incident Hazmat, Fire, Explosion, damage to the petroleum pipeline Potential for significant evacuations Derailment that involves Hazmat near the River could be an ecological nightmare Damage to other Utilities along the Track Easement Historical Railroad Emergencies Local Incidents December 2000 –Union Pacific Train derails just north of Lodi involving 9 box cars April 2015 –Train Derails on the Spur Line Near General Mills February 2017 –Union Pacific Train derails sending 22 rail cars into the Cosumnes River Nationally Significant Rail Incidents June 2016 –Union Pacific Train derails in the Columbia River Gorge near the Washington Oregon Border February 2023 –East Palestine OH, 38 rail car derailment, 11 cars carrying hazardous materials Turner/General Mills Incident 2015 Cosumnes River Derailment 2017 Columbia River Gorge Derailment 2016 Other Railroad Emergencies Other Railroad Emergencies Emergency Response Priorities Life Safety Mass Causality Incident (MCI) Evacuation/Coordinated with Lodi PD Fire Containment Run off containment Hazardous Materials Isolate and Deny entry Material Identification Notification to Local, State, and Federal Partners Initial Response Four Engine Companies and One Truck Company Fifteen Fire Personnel Lodi Police Mutual Aid Woodbridge Fire, Stockton Fire, South County Fire Authority Union Pacific Kinder Morgan TimeLine First 30 minutes Assess the situation, isolate and deny entry, make notifications, get additional resources, evacuations if necessary Fire mitigation if applicable 2-3 hours Union Pacific to get their resources on scene Unified Command with Union Pacific, Lodi PD 6-12 hours Union Pacific to get Heavy Equipment on scene 12-72 hours Hazard mitigation, begin recovery efforts Lodi Fire Hazmat Team HM 2081 1995 GMC Vandura housed at Station 2 Hazardous Materials Team Capabilities Loss of personnel over the years has hurt the Teams Capabilities Currently 4 vacancies on the Team We would have to rely heavily on Mutual Aid Typically only 2-3 Hazmat Tech/Specialist on per day, rest of staff is trained to the FRO Level FRO Level –Defensive Strategies, Isolate deny entry, make notifications, Decon Tech/Specialist –Offensive Strategy, mitigation Hazmat Team wishes to increase number of Tech/Specialist Other Utilities Affected Kinder Morgan Petroleum Pipeline 10” Pipeline Runs along the tracks on the Railroad Easement Water, Waste Water, Storm Drains Under the tracks at various Street Intersections Electric Utility Several long sections where up to 3 distribution circuits are located on a single pole line adjacent to the track. PG&E Has an 8” gas transmission line that runs under the Tracks at Locust St. City Infrastructure Water Tower in close proximity Several components of Public Safety Radio Systems on the Tower Downtown Business District Major Economic Engine for the City City Hall, Public Safety Facilities, City Network Hub, Jail 2 blocks from the Tracks Opportunities to be Better Prepared Training Increasing the capabilities of our HazMat Team Strengthening our EOC/Emergency Plan Underground the Electric Utility Infrastructure on the Railroad Easement Questions