Editing Casselton, North Dakota (section)

===2013 train derailment===
On December 30, 2013, a westbound [[BNSF Railway|BNSF]] train carrying [[soybeans]] derailed approximately one mile west of Casselton. An adjacent eastbound BNSF train carrying [[crude oil]] struck wreckage from the westbound train (accident location {{coord|46|54|4.82|N|97|13|59.42|W|type:event}}). The collision ignited the crude oil and caused a chain of large explosions, which were heard and felt several miles away.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.inforum.com/event/article/id/422408/|title=Casselton train crash a 'huge accident' but a coincidence; Inforum; December 31, 2013.|access-date=August 21, 2018}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|url=http://in.reuters.com/article/northdakota-derailment-idINL2N0K919L20131230|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160123191751/http://in.reuters.com/article/northdakota-derailment-idINL2N0K919L20131230|url-status=dead|archive-date=January 23, 2016|title=UPDATE 3-Train collision in North Dakota sets oil rail cars ablaze|first=Alicia|last=Nelson|newspaper=Reuters|date=December 30, 2013|access-date=August 21, 2018}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|title=As oil train burns, 2,300 residents of Casselton, N.D., told to flee|url= http://www.startribune.com/business/238070771.html?page=1&c=y |date=December 30, 2013|newspaper=Star Tribune}}</ref> The resulting fireball created a massive cloud of black smoke, which prompted authorities to issue a voluntary evacuation of the city and surrounding area as a precaution. The [[National Transportation Safety Board]] conducted an investigation, and in 2017 issued findings of probable cause, starting with a broken [[axle]] on the westbound train.<ref>{{cite web|url= https://www.ntsb.gov/news/press-releases/Pages/PR20170207b.aspx |title=NTSB Issues Probable Cause for Casselton, North Dakota, Crude Oil Train Accident}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.ntsb.gov/investigations/pages/casselton_nd.aspx|title=DCA14MR004|website=www.ntsb.gov|access-date=August 21, 2018}}</ref><ref>{{YouTube|ZhraoVIJ1OE|NTSB video}}</ref>

Although no casualties were reported, as the crew of the crude oil train abandoned the lead locomotives before they were engulfed in flames as soon as they had derailed and come to stop in a snowbank,<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZhraoVIJ1OE|title = BNSF Railway Train Derailment and Subsequent Train Collision|website = [[YouTube]]}}</ref> the incident occurred in proximity to a populated area and renewed safety concerns regarding the transportation of hazardous materials by rail, especially in the wake of the [[Lac-Mégantic derailment]] in [[Canada]] earlier in the year. Casselton mayor Ed McConnell, acknowledging that the town "dodged a bullet", publicly called on the [[United States government|federal government]] to review the dangers and urged lawmakers to consider [[Pipeline transport|pipelines]] as a safer option.<ref name="abc7">{{cite news|url=http://abclocal.go.com/kabc/story?id=9376994|title=Train derailment: Mayor says ND town dodged bullet|date=December 31, 2013|publisher=KABC-TV Los Angeles|access-date=December 31, 2013|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140101184114/http://abclocal.go.com/kabc/story?id=9376994|archive-date=January 1, 2014|url-status=dead}}</ref>