Site of the Graniteville Train Disaster

The Graniteville train disaster was an American rail disaster that occurred on January 6, 2005, in Graniteville, South Carolina. At roughly 2:40 am Eastern Standard Time, two Norfolk Southern trains collided near an Avondale Mills plant in Graniteville.[1] Norfolk Southern train No. P22 was parked on a siding near the Avondale Mills plant. Train No. 192, which was transporting chlorine gas, sodium hydroxide and cresol, was diverted by an improperly lined railroad switch onto the siding, where it collided with P22. The collision derailed both locomotives and 16 of 192's 42 freight cars, as well as the locomotive and one of P22's two freight cars. One of 192's tank cars loaded with 90 tons of chlorine ruptured, releasing about 60 tons of the gas. About 1/3 of the load was recovered by industrial responders. Nine people died (eight at the time of the accident, one later due to chlorine inhalation), and at least 250 people were treated for chlorine exposure. 5,400 residents within a mile of the crash site were forced to evacuate for nearly two weeks while HAZMAT teams and cleanup crews decontaminated the area.