According to a recent article in the Southtown Star, Canadian National Railway will pay $25,000 to settle a lawsuit filed by the State of Illinois and Winnebago County over a train derailment in Rockford, Illinois in June 2009.
During the derailment, 18 rail cars, all containing ethanol, left the tracks resulting in an explosion. At the height of the fire, 14 rail cars were ablaze. At least one person died because of this incident.
According to the article, “Canadian National will pay nearly $18,000 to the state’s oil spill response fund. More than $7,500 will go to the hazardous waste fund to repay the Illinois Environmental Protection Agency for testing and monitoring.” Canadian National has also agreed to “test wells in the area one more time to make sure drinking water is safe.”
Stay tuned to the Illinois Environmental Law Blog for more news and developments.
