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WASHINGTON – As part of its ongoing investigation into the May 12, 2015, derailment of Amtrak Train 188 in Philadelphia, the NTSB today provides this update on the analysis of the engineer’s cell phone and related records.

The NTSB is conducting a detailed examination of the engineer’s cell phone calls, texts, data and cell phone tower transmission activity records from the phone carrier; and records from Amtrak’s on-board Wi-Fi system.

Analysis of the phone records does not indicate that any calls, texts, or data usage occurred during the time the engineer was operating the train. Amtrak’s records confirm that the engineer did not access the train’s Wi-Fi system while he was operating the locomotive.

To determine whether the phone was in “airplane mode” or was powered off, investigators in the NTSB laboratory in Washington have been examining the phone’s operating system, which contains more than 400,000 files of meta-data. Investigators are obtaining a phone identical to the engineer’s phone as an exemplar model and will be running tests to validate the data.

The engineer provided the NTSB with the passcode to the cell phone, which allowed investigators to access the data without having to go through the phone manufacturer.

Last year the NTSB lab processed about 80 personal electronic devices and more than 40 cell phones. The phone records analysis of the Amtrak 188 investigation has been more complicated than anticipated because the phone carrier has multiple systems that log different types of phone activity, some of which are based in different time zones. Investigators worked with the phone carrier to validate the timestamps in several sets of records with activity from multiple time zones to correlate them all to the time zone in which the accident occurred, Eastern Daylight Time.

NTSB’s Amtrak 188 accident webpage has links to all of the reports, videos, images, testimony and other related materials can be accessed: http://go.usa.gov/38MUB.

Tags Amtrak, Amtrak train 188, derailment, NTSB

WASHINGTON – The National Transportation Safety Board issued a Safety Alert urging pilots to vigilantly look out for other aircraft and to make their own presence known.

The Board has investigated numerous general aviation accidents in which pilots operating near one another did not maintain adequate visual lookout and failed to see and avoid other aircraft. Investigators also note that pilots can be distracted by technology such as cell phones, tablets and other devices that challenge the see-and-avoid concept.

“As a pilot, your first job is to fly your own airplane,” said NTSB Chairman Christopher A. Hart, who is also a pilot. “Part of that job is to scan for other airplanes. On-board traffic advisory systems are not a substitute for an outside visual scan.”

The safety alert advises pilots to scan for traffic throughout their flight, clearly communicate intentions, use lights to be more conspicuous and encourage passengers to help scan for other aircraft.

This and other Safety Alerts are available at: http://www.ntsb.gov/safety/safety-alerts/Documents/SA_045.pdf.

Tags NTSB

At least seven people were killed and over 200 people hurt after an Amtrak train, carrying 238 passengers and five crew members, derailed and rolled onto its side in the Port Richmond section of Philadelphia Tuesday night, according to officials.

Police said Wednesday that seven people had died, after the death toll had risen to six earlier when Temple University Hospital officials confirmed one patient had died of their injuries overnight.

All seven cars of Amtrak Northeast Regional Train 188 derailed and came off the tracks near Frankford Junction on the 2000 block of Wheatsheaf lane shortly after 9 p.m., officials said. The train was heading to New York from Washington, D.C., and has six passenger cars as well as an engine.

Read more from Forbes.

Tags Airport, NTSB

Washington, DC – April 28, Congressman Donald Norcross (D – N.J.) introduced his first bill, H.R. 2074, the Toxics by Rail Accountability and Community Knowledge (TRACK) Act, to improve hazmat-by-rail safety by implementing a series of recommendations made by the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) following the 2012 train derailment in Paulsboro, New Jersey. Since being sworn in to Congress in November of last year, Rep. Norcross has worked closely with Senator Bob Menendez and local officials on legislation designed to avoid catastrophes like the one that occurred in Paulsboro, while working to benefit from the lessons learned from this accident.

On November 20, 2012, a freight train derailed in Paulsboro, New Jersey, causing several tanker cars to crash and spill toxic vinyl chloride into the atmosphere. Thanks to the efforts of the local first responders, State Office of Emergency Management, U.S. Coast guard, and countless others, the risk of injury was minimized. However, an estimated 1,500 people were forced to evacuate their homes.

In the wake of the accident, the NTSB conducted an independent investigation into the cause of the derailment and toxic chemical spill. The legislation introduced by Rep. Norcross addresses a number of the public safety concerns raised by the NTSB, while working to implement their recommendations into law.

“As Representatives in Congress, our top duty is to ensure the safety and security of our residents, which is why I have chosen to pursue these common-sense rail safety reforms in my very first piece of legislation,” said Congressman Norcross. “Following the 2012 train derailment in Paulsboro and other preventable public safety emergencies, we must ensure that rail users take steps to minimize the risk of an accident and provide recourse to those affected when companies fail to do so. These NTSB-supported recommendations will improve rail safety and expand protections for first responders and residents who live along train routes.”

“After years of study, the NTSB found that Conrail’s actions after the Paulsboro derailment endangered the train crew, local residents and first responders. But, the report also gave us a roadmap for how to improve the safety of shipping hazardous materials by rail—and this bill turns those recommendations into action,” said Sen. Menendez, who introduced the companion bill in the Senate. “No legislation can change the events of that day, or fully bring back peace of mind to the residents of Paulsboro, but I hope this legislation can be one step towards righting the wrongs that occurred and to forcing the railroads that operate in our communities to put public safety at the forefront.”

The TRACK Act will:

Create strong penalties for railroads that violate safety standards, to ensure that safety lapses aren’t viewed as an acceptable cost of doing business;
Require up-to-date, accurate, and standardized hazardous materials information to better support first responders and emergency management officials;
Establish new safety procedures and qualifications to improve moveable bridge crossing safety;
Improve risk assessment and decision-making tools for railroads to ensure that safety is always the top priority; and
Enhance public education along rail routes that carry hazardous materials to ensure communities are prepared to respond in the event of an emergency.

Tags HR 2074, Norcross, NTSB, rail hazmat safety, TRACK Act

The National Transportation Safety Board April 6 issued four urgent recommendations calling for more robust and fire-resistant rail cars to be produced to safely carry flammable liquids such as crude oil and ethanol.
In its recommendations, the Board calls for an aggressive schedule of replacing or retrofitting the current rail car fleet with better thermal protection against heat from fires, such as through a ceramic thermal blanket, and increasing the capacity of pressure relief devices.
“We can’t wait a decade for safer rail cars,” said NTSB Chairman Christopher A. Hart. “Crude oil rail traffic is increasing exponentially. That is why this issue is on our Most Wanted List of Safety Improvements. The industry needs to make this issue a priority and expedite the safety enhancements, otherwise, we continue to put our communities at risk.”
The Board said the current fleet of DOT-111 tank cars rupture too quickly when exposed to a pool fire caused by a derailment or other accident with resulting spillage and ignition. And based on a series of accidents the Board has investigated in recent months, performance of the industry’s enhanced rail car, the CPC-1232, is not satisfactory under these conditions.
“The NTSB concludes that the thermal performance and pressure relief capacity of bare steel tank cars that conform to current federal and industry requirements is insufficient to prevent tank failures from pool fire thermal exposure and the resulting overpressurization,” said the letter that included the recommendations from the Board to Acting Administrator Timothy P. Butters of the Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration.
The Board also called for swiftness in changing the fleet and called for intermediate deadlines and transparent reporting to ensure the tank car fleet is being upgraded as quickly as possible.
To view the recommendation, click on the following link: http://www.ntsb.gov/safety/safety-recs/recletters/R-15-014-017.pdf.

Tags National Transportation Safety Board, NTSB, rail tank cars

?The National Transportation Safety Board April 6 issued four urgent recommendations calling for more robust and fire-resistant rail cars to be produced to safely carry flammable liquids such as crude oil and ethanol.

In its recommendations, the Board calls for an aggressive schedule of replacing or retrofitting the current rail car fleet with better thermal protection against heat from fires, such as through a ceramic thermal blanket, and increasing the capacity of pressure relief devices.

“We can’t wait a decade for safer rail cars,” said NTSB Chairman Christopher A. Hart. “Crude oil rail traffic is increasing exponentially. That is why this issue is on our Most Wanted List of Safety Improvements. The industry needs to make this issue a priority and expedite the safety enhancements, otherwise, we continue to put our communities at risk.”

The Board said the current fleet of DOT-111 tank cars rupture too quickly when exposed to a pool fire caused by a derailment or other accident with resulting spillage and ignition. And based on a series of accidents the Board has investigated in recent months, performance of the industry’s enhanced rail car, the CPC-1232, is not satisfactory under these conditions.

“The NTSB concludes that the thermal performance and pressure relief capacity of bare steel tank cars that conform to current federal and industry requirements is insufficient to prevent tank failures from pool fire thermal exposure and the resulting overpressurization,” said the letter that included the recommendations from the Board to Acting Administrator Timothy P. Butters of the Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration.

The Board also called for swiftness in changing the fleet and called for intermediate deadlines and transparent reporting to ensure the tank car fleet is being upgraded as quickly as possible.

To view the recommendation, click on the following link: http://www.ntsb.gov/safety/safety-recs/recletters/R-15-014-017.pdf.

Tags crude oil and ethanol, National Transportation Safety Board, NTSB, rail tank cars

WASHINGTON – Christopher A. Hart was sworn as the 13th chairman of the National Transportation Safety Board March 17 during a ceremony presided over by Chief Administrative Law Judge Alfonso Montano.

President Barack Obama nominated Hart to serve as chairman in January 2015, and the U.S. Senate confirmed him on March 12, 2015. He has been serving as acting chairman since April 26, 2014.

Prior to stepping into the role of acting chairman, Hart had served as vice chairman and a member of the board since 2009. He also served as a member of the board from 1990 to 1993.

“I am very grateful for this opportunity to lead this dynamic agency that is dedicated to improving transportation safety,” said Hart. “I have been involved in transportation safety for more than 30 years, and the NTSB truly sets the bar higher for continued safety improvement.”

Hart is an aerospace engineer, attorney, and licensed pilot with commercial, multi-engine and instrument ratings. His family has a tradition of accomplishment in the field of transportation. In 1926, his great uncle, James Herman Banning, was the first African-American to receive a pilot’s license issued by the U.S. Government.

After serving as a member of the board from 1990-1993, Hart served as deputy administrator of the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, before moving to the Federal Aviation Administration in 1995. He served as the FAA assistant administrator for System Safety and then became deputy director for Air Traffic Safety Oversight before returning to the board in 2009.

Hart holds a law degree from Harvard Law School and Master’s and Bachelor’s degrees in Aerospace Engineering from Princeton University. He is a member of the District of Columbia Bar and the Lawyer-Pilots Bar Association.

Tags Christopher Hart, National Transportation Safety Board, NTSB

WASHINGTON – The National Transportation Safety Board will hold a public forum March 24-25 on the dangers of trespassing on the railroad right-of-way.

While railroad tracks have long held a cultural resonance with Americans, featured in motion pictures, TV shows, music videos and photography, they are private property. And they can be a deadly place. In 2013, 476 people were killed and 432 were injured in trespassing accidents, according to preliminary data from the Federal Railroad Administration.

The forum, Trains and Trespassing: Ending Tragic Encounters, will be chaired by NTSB Board Member Robert L. Sumwalt. It will feature speakers who have been seriously injured by trains; those whose communities have been affected; and railroad employee assistance program employees whose train crews have struck people on railroad property. The forum will draw on the expertise of railroads, regulators, and researchers, among others, to review the diversity of trespassing accidents and incidents and look at current and future prevention strategies.

The forum will be held at the NTSB’s Board Room and Conference Center, located at 429 L’Enfant Plaza, S.W., Washington, D.C. However, on March 25, the forum will include a tour of Norfolk Southern’s safety train at Union Station.

More information about the forum can be found here: http://www.ntsb.gov/trespassing.

The public can view the forum in person or by live webcast on the NTSB’s website. As soon as they are available, an agenda and webcast details will be posted.

Tags National Transportation Safety Board, NTSB, trespassing