Disasters

"WASHINGTON — The U.S. Department of Transportation collects relatively small civil penalties against the railroads it regulates, as concern grows over the safety of shipping large volumes of crude oil and ethanol in tank cars long known to be deficient, federal documents show."

"A rare blast of snow, sleet and ice hit the U.S. South on Tuesday, prompting five states to declare a state of emergency, closing the New Orleans airport and causing chaos on roads for drivers unaccustomed to the dangerously slick conditions."

"The agency has needed Congress to approve extra disaster relief funds every year over roughly the past decade to handle mounting climate-related damage."

"This month's chemical spill in West Virginia reveals a weak web of rules on chemical use."

"CASSELTON, N.D. — Kerry’s Kitchen is where Casselton residents gather for gossip and comfort food, especially the caramel rolls baked fresh every morning. But a fiery rail accident last month only a half mile down the tracks, which prompted residents to evacuate the town, has shattered this calm, along with people’s confidence in the crude-oil convoys that rumble past Kerry’s seven times a day."

"One of the biggest earthquakes in U.S. history didn't occur in California. Or Alaska. It happened in the country's midsection some 200 years ago in an area where today seven states straddle the Mississippi River Valley."

"ST. PIERRE-JOLYS, Manitoba — Several thousand people in southern Manitoba have been told that a pipeline explosion could mean they will be without natural gas service for up to several days as temperatures dip below zero."

"The National Transportation Safety Board called Thursday for federal regulators to take more aggressive steps to protect the public and the environment from oil spills and fires from trains."