FREDERICKSBURG, Va. — Days following a freight train derailment in Fredericksburg, the company CSX is admitting human error caused the accident.
In a community meeting addressing concerned neighbors on Wednesday, CSX State Relations Director Randy Marcus said the section of the train that derailed wasn’t properly parked.
“One section of the train was tied down improperly,” said Marcus. “It just wasn’t done exactly right.”
“I want to apologize for the incident,” he said.
Marcus couldn’t answer questions on the proper protocol to assure rail cars are secured correctly.
He said the train’s locomotive was having mechanical issues. The two-member crew parked the train on the yard tracks, the line next to the main tracks, to take the locomotive back to Richmond.
Since the cars weren’t properly fastened, they began rolling down the tracks.
Marcus explained how "derail devices" naturally toppled the cars over, which fell onto the nearby sound barrier and crashed into several garages at Cobblestone Square Apartments around 9 p.m.
“The derail devices are safeguards to prevent loose cars from rolling onto the main line tracks by intentionally sending them off the tracks,” he added. “It was clearly too close to the adjacent property.”
The last of the cars was removed on Sunday, but the cleanup process has yet to begin. A section of the parking lot where the garages are located is still blocked off, preventing residents like Kevin Grigsby from getting to his car.
He and other neighbors expressed frustration and concern about the structure of the wall.
“Is the wall sufficient?” Grigsby asked. “Is it going to be safe to reenter those garages?”
CSX said it will now move the location of the derail devices so it’s not impacting neighboring properties, provide additional training and speed up help for employees in these types of situations.
CSX said it’s up to the apartment complex to hire an engineer to analyze the wall’s structural integrity. A representative from the claims department was also at the meeting to assure how the company will reimburse costs to take care of property damage and to build the wall.
Mayor Kerry Devine vocalized her need for enhanced transparency and additional ways to prevent a similar incident from happening again. Others questioned if there should be more crew members to review protocols.
“We don't want this to happen again,” Devine told WUSA9. “We do live in close proximities throughout our town to the rails so any accident could become a major thing.”