Jul 10, 2009 12:38 pm US/Central
Lawsuit Filed In Rockford Train Derailment
ROCKFORD, Ill. (CBS) ―
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This massive, raging fire followedd the derailment and explosion of a train carrying ethanol near Rockford on Friday, June 19.
CBS
Environmental cleanup efforts in Rockford are continuing following last month's fiery train derailment that leaked ethanol into surrounding soil and water, and killed one woman.
Illinois Attorney General Lisa Madigan and Winnebago County State's Attorney Joseph Bruscato on Thursday filed a lawsuit against the Canadian National Railway Company. The lawsuit alleges the environment and people in the area were endangered by the ethanol.
A CNRC train with 114 cars, including 74 tankers filled with ethanol, derailed on its way to Chicago from Freeport, Ill. Zoila Tellez was killed in a fire caused by the burning ethanol, her pregnant daughter suffered a miscarriage and her husband was also severely burned.
It appears the fiery derailment of the freight train might have been prevented. A full hour before it happened, there was at least one frantic 911 call warning an operator that heavy rains had washed out the rail bed.
The local sheriff said it is unclear what happened to that information.
"We're looking at phone calls we received prior to (the accident), we're looking at what we did with those phone calls, what information was passed on, who was it passed on to," Winnebago County Sheriff Dick Meyers said.
A court-ordered settlement of the lawsuit was also filed. It says the railroad company will survey the area and cleanup any environmental damage discovered. The railroad company faces fines if the agreement isn't followed.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
(© MMIX, CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved.)
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