Judge bans bomb trains citing 'cataclysmic' danger

By Mike Magnoli

Judge bans bomb trains citing 'cataclysmic' danger

WEST PALM BEACH, Fla (CBS12) -- On Friday, DC handed down its ruling on the safety of transporting LNG, a combustible natural gas on rail cars, due to the risk of 'cataclysmic' danger.

For years, Florida's East Coast Rail and several energy companies pushed for what they called a "Virtual LNG Pipeline," which would transport LNG in bulk by rail to Florida's major seaports, where it could be loaded onto ships for export.

But a group called Earthjustice and other activists sounded the alarm.

See also: Okeechobee man gets three years for plotting attacks on high school and Miami church

LNG is carried in what are called DOT 113 containers and trains can have 100 or more of the LNG tanker cars- each with more capacity than what was allowed when the LNG rail rules were made in 2015.

In a federal lawsuit, the group Earthjustice claimed, 20 loaded LNG tanker cars have the same energy potential as an atomic bomb.

As part of the pilot program, single rail cars and flatbeds with portable canisters of LNG had been traveling through the Treasure Coast and Palm Beach County on their way to Florida ports on the same tracks as Brightline to Florida ports. That means the 'bomb train' has rolled past local schools, churches, and apartments.

Today's court decision means LNG train tanker cars are not allowed. The Judge found that the Department of Transportation (DOT) President-elect Trump's first term did not fully consider the potentially cataclysmic risk to local communities.

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