Pennsylvania has one of the country’s oldest and most well known railroad systems, and its “City of Brotherly Love,” Philadelphia many commuters get to and from work as well as other destinations by train. In a state full of so many individuals who commute by train, news of a railroad accident is always troubling.
Earlier this week, such an accident occurred in Fridley, Minnesota. At around 7:00 a.m. on Saturday morning a Northstar commuter freight train derailed when BNSF tracks failed near Fridley Station. The accident, which caused a disastrous site to see, spilled corn and diesel fuel into the Rice Creek at Locke Lake and injured two railroad workers.
According to a local Minnesota newspaper, The Fridley Patch, Northstar commuter rail service between the towns of Big Lake and Minneapolis has been cancelled since Saturday and is expect to remain out-of-service at least until Tuesday morning, July 19. The report stated that the reason for service cancellation is that the tracks are still impassable due to the derailment accident.
Although railroad companies are responsible for keeping the operations safe for employees, riders, and pedestrians, railroad crashes kill hundreds of victims each year and injure thousands of others. Pennsylvania’s rich and ongoing heritage of rail travel means that accidents like these could occur throughout the state.
Just days before the July 16th train accident, Twenty BNSF rail cars derailed outside of nearby Brainerd Minnesota. On July 10th, 2011 a train with 121 loaded coal cars and three locomotives originated in Montana and was traveling east to Superior, Wisconsin when it derailed. Fortunately, no injuries have yet been reported in the July 10 accident.
Since train accidents can often by difficult to litigate, you will need a Philadelphia injury lawyer with experience and expertise with train accidents. Edith Pearce, Esq. spent over ten years working as an attorney for an insurance company and defense firm and knows the “tricks of the trade.” Contact Edith Pearce, Esq. of The Pearce Law Firm in Philadelphia if you or a family member has become a railroad accident victim.