Date: January 7, 2019
Location: Lynchburg, Virginia (USA)
Address: 3915 Hydro Street, 24503
Type: Dust Fire
Fuel: Coal
Industry: Railcar Refurbishment
Equipment: Dust Collector
Company: Appalachian Tank Car Services
Database Incidents: None Recorded
Loss: No Injuries
Capital Cost: Unknown
Status: Open
Confirmation: Unconfirmed
Company Description:
According to the company website, Appalachian Tank Car Services is a rail services organization that offers an assortment of services that include railcar maintenance and repair, short line railroad operations, coal loading and unloading, track maintenance, fleet management, and brokerage services. It was founded in Putnam County in 2000 and now has 34 operations in 14 states.
Incident Description:
On January 7, 2019, ABC 13 WSET reported a fire at a railcar services plant in Lynchburg, Virginia.
Firefighters, who spent more than five hours on the scene, reported that the fire started in the dust collector of a machine to clean out rail cars before they are refurbished. Its location made it difficult to access, forcing fire crews to run miles of hose to reach the fire.
No one was injured. The value of any property damage is unknown.
OSHA Inspections:
An establishment search turned up one OSHA inspection for Appalachian Tank Car Services, but it was not flagged for combustible dust.
Sources:
ABC 13 WSET
