WHYY published a follow-up article on May 2nd about the train derailment that took place in Whitemarsh Township in July 2023. The 40-car derailment of the CSX train led to it spilling harmless silicone pellets, however the train was also carrying the dry cleaning agent tetrachloroethylene, which is a carcinogenic.

According to WHYY, it followed up with Federal Railroad Administration and found that due the cause of the derailment being a sinkhole along the tracks, no formal summary had been issued, not had any recommendations. The administration reserves full investigation for accidents that they think they can take action to prevent in the future.

From the WHYY article:

“FRA is primarily concerned with accidents caused by factors that are preventable including serious track or mechanical defects, or human factors,” the spokesperson said. “Events caused by weather, climate such as flooding and washouts, or other natural occurrences including geologic ones like earthquakes and landslides are generally of limited value. In other words, we tend to focus investigatory resources towards events where the cause and or contributing factors are unclear or indeterminate at the outset.”

You can read the full article here.

Photo: NBC10