FREDERICKSBURG ADVANCE, ADELE UPHAUS

Directly behind the five CSX freight cars that derailed behind the Cobblestone Square neighborhood in Fredericksburg City last month were eight more carrying molten sulfur—which is flammable and can release hydrogen sulfide, a poisonous gas, when it burns.

Those cars did not derail, but the fact that the incident wasn’t as catastrophic as it could have been “shouldn’t be down to luck,” said Rep. Abigail Spanberger on Wednesday morning.

Spanberger visited the site of the derailment, as well as the CSX railyard located slightly further south behind the Mayfield neighborhood, on Wednesday, along with Vice Mayor Chuck Frye; City Council members Janaan Holmes, Will Mackintosh, and Jon Gerlach; Fire Chief Mike Jones; City Manager Tim Baroody; and representatives from Mayfield and the local NAACP.

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The goal of the visit was to give everyone a “boots on the ground” understanding of how close the rail lines are to residences and businesses.

The site of the July 20 derailment is within 20 feet of the soundwall at the rear of the Cobblestone neighborhood, and the CSX railyard on Railroad Avenue, where the company stores tanker cars that frequently contain propane, is about 75 feet from the nearest house.

Residences line Railroad Avenue and streets perpendicular to it from Summit Street down to South Street.

On the other side of the tracks from the railyard are businesses such as M&M Auto Parts, the Belman Road Convenience Center, and Braehead Farm. The boundary lines of neighboring jurisdictions are within a few miles.

“Any impact within city limits is an impact on Spotsylvania and Stafford as well,” said Spanberger.

The recent incident has renewed questions about CSX’s operations in the Fredericksburg area.

The July 20 derailment was caused when a section of rail cars that were not properly “tied down,” or parked, rolled forward and reached a safety device called a “split derail,” which diverted the cars off the tracks in order to prevent them from reaching the mainline. The diverted cars then fell into and destroyed a section of the soundwall behind Cobblestone.

Two of the cars were carrying scrap metal, one was carrying lime, one was empty, and one was carrying soybeans, Jones said Wednesday. The eight cars behind those were carrying molten sulfur.

“Every CSX freight line has hazardous materials,” he said. “As long as they’re in the container, they’re good. The problem is when they get out.”

Spanberger said the derailment infrastructure had been in place at that location before Cobblestone was constructed.

“At one time, it would have been appropriate to have that infrastructure there, but not anymore,” she said. “Another challenge is what is being stored at the [CSX rail yard in Mayfield].”

In 2021, after Mayfield residents and Council members raised concerns about tanker cars containing hazardous material being parked in the yard for long periods of time, City Council passed a resolution demanding that CSX move the tanker cars.

Since then, Jones said Wednesday, CSX sends a daily email with information about what materials are being stored in the tanker cars. He said he has access to an app that allows him to see what is in each car and how long it’s been there.

But these precautions aren’t enough for Trudy Smith, Mayfield Civic Association president. She said the tanker cars need to be moved out of the neighborhood.

“[CSX] says they have enough room to store them [further south],” she said. “Why here? It’s too close.”

Frye said the City Council will “continue to push on this issue.”

“All we can do is push,” he said. “CSX can decide what they will do, but it’s our job to say it shouldn’t be done.”

CSX officials have confirmed that they will be at the next City Council meeting on August 27 to discuss these issues.