BRADDOCK, Pa. Two freight trains owned by a U.S. Steel subsidiary crashed near a Pittsburgh-area plant early Tuesday, killing one person and causing cars on one train to derail, the Associated Press reports.
The cause of the crash at the company's Edgar Thompson Works in Braddock, east of Pittsburgh, is being investigated.
Both trains are owned by Union Railroad, which is part of Transtar Inc., a transportation subsidiary that hauls freight to and from U.S. Steel mills, U.S. Steel spokeswoman Erin DiPietro said.
The Allegheny County medical examiner's office responded after the engineer of one train couldn't immediately be located. DiPietro said the victim worked for Union Railroad, but she didn't describe the victim's job.
She could not comment on news video showing that one train had been pulling empty cars from the plant while another hauled iron ore pellets to it.
A hazardous materials crew was called because of diesel fuel leaking into Turtle Creek from a locomotive. An environmental contractor was working to contain the leak, DiPietro said.
(This item was distributed March 16, 2010, by the Associated Press.)
PITTSBURGH, Pa. -- A 54-year-old Union Railroad engineer with 35 years of service, Andrew Monheim, was identified as having been killed March 16 in a collision between two Union Railroad trains outside Pittsburgh. The accident occurred near U.S. Steel's Edgar Thompson Works.
No injuries among other crew members were reported.
Union Railroad confirmed that following the collision, some 1,200 gallons of diesel fuel leaded into a near-by creek and that an environmental contractor was working to contain the spill.
The FRA said it has recovered the video and data recorders from both trains.
Union Railroad, part of Transtar, Inc., is a subsidiary of U.S. Steel Corporation.
BLET Engineer killed as trains collide in Pittsburgh
(The following story by Jon Schmitz appeared on the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette website on March 17, 2010. Andrew Monheim was a member of BLET Division 700.)
PITTSBURGH, Pa. The Federal Railroad Administration is investigating the collision of two freight trains near U.S. Steel's Edgar Thomson Plant in North Braddock early Tuesday. The engineer of one train was killed.
The Allegheny County medical examiner identified the victim as Andrew Monheim, 54, of Plum.
The trains were operated by Union Railroad, part of Transtar Inc., a transportation subsidiary of U.S. Steel, company spokeswoman Erin DiPietro said. Mr. Monheim was a 35-year employee of the railroad.
The collision occurred shortly after 4 a.m. where two sets of tracks converge on the south bank of Turtle Creek in North Versailles. An empty train operated by Mr. Monheim struck a train carrying iron ore pellets to the plant, striking the eighth car and causing some of the cargo to spill.
Mr. Monheim was ejected from the train and could not immediately be located. His body was found beneath the spilled cargo after rescue crews dialed his cell phone and heard it ringing, said North Versailles Police Chief Vincent DiCenzo Jr.
"We don't know if there was a medical problem, a mechanical failure or driver error," he said. "From our understanding neither train was going very fast."
Mr. Monheim was pronounced dead at 8:59 a.m.
Four Federal Railroad Administration inspectors were at the crash site on Tuesday afternoon, agency spokesman Rob Kulat said. Video equipment and data recorders called black boxes were recovered from the trains, he said.
The investigation could take up to a year, he said.
Allegheny County homicide detectives also were investigating, county spokesman Kevin Evanto said.
Ms. DiPietro said no other injuries were reported. Diesel fuel leaking from a locomotive was contained by an environmental contractor, she said.
The steel and railroad companies issued a statement expressing condolences to Mr. Monheim's family and friends.
"The Union Railroad is fully cooperating with all agencies involved in the investigation, including the Federal Railroad Administration," the statement said.
Plant operations were not affected by the collision as alternate rail lines were used, Ms. DiPietro said.
According to federal safety records, Union Railroad had no fatal accidents and one reported injury in the last 10 years. The injury occurred in 2003.
The Edgar Thomson plant is part of U.S. Steel's Mon Valley Works and produces steel slabs.
Friends, employer mourn railroad worker killed in Union Railroad train collision
(The following appeared at WPXI.com on March 16, 2010. Andrew Monheim was a member of BLET Division 700.)
EAST PITTSBURGH, Pa. A Union Railroad worker from Plum was killed in a train collision and derailment in North Versailles early Tuesday, authorities said.
Initially, crews were unable to locate Andrew Monheim, 54, of Plum, after the two Union Railroad trains collided near U.S. Steel's Edgar Thompson Works near East Pittsburgh. The medical examiners office later confirmed that Monheim was found dead.
Monheim was a 35-year Union Railroad employee who served as a locomotive engineer, the company said in a statement. Union Railroad officials personally informed his family of the incident, the company said.
In a statement, the company also said, United States Steel Corporation, Transtar, Inc. and Union Railroad would like to express sincerest condolences to Monheims family and friends.
Monheims friend and neighbor, Erda Gordon, said Monheim was the glue that held his family together.
He was a good family man and just a very caring person, Gordon said. All the neighbors thought a lot of him, and we are very, very saddened to hear that he has been in this accident.
The loud collision when the train derailed startled neighbors.
The sound was like we hear when the mill blasts off, Donna Koran said.
It woke me up, her husband, John Koran, said. I got up and checked everything and looked down the hill and saw the red lights."
We got binoculars, Donna Koran added. A car leaning half way over, thats what I could see.
Authorities said a hazardous-materials crew was called to a report of 1,200 gallons of fuel leaking, some of it into Turtle Creek. Union Railroad said an environmental contractor is at the scene helping to contain the leak.
Initially, it was believed that a conductor was missing, but he and other crew members were found uninjured in the train's caboose.
An investigation into the collision and derailment is under way. The Federal Railroad Administration said it has recovered the video and data recorders from both trains.
The Union Railroad is fully cooperating with all agencies involved in the investigation, including the Federal Railroad Administration, Union Railroad said in its statement.
Union Railroad said it had no additional information. Union Railroad is part of Transtar, Inc., which is a transportation subsidiary of U.S. Steel Corporation.
