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Fiery Iowa train derailment has 1 group calling for change

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March 11th, 2017 by Ric Hanson

GRAETTINGER, Iowa (AP) — A fiery train derailment in rural Iowa has at least one group suggesting that the industry should move faster to upgrade aging rail tankers. A Union Pacific train hauling 100 tankers full of ethanol derailed early Friday over a creek near Graettinger, about 160 miles northwest of Des Moines. It sent 27 tanker cars off the tracks.

Federal rules enacted in 2015 call for replacing or retrofitting the tankers in question by 2029, although most would have to come off the tracks sooner. Karen Darch, co-chair of an Illinois-based coalition that has pushed for rail safety enhancements, says she would like “to see the industry stepping up and beating the deadline.”