December 31
A strong storm caused flooding and mudslides from Sonoma to Monterey, CA. People living along the Napa River and on hillsides were encouraged to evacuate. Some houses were destroyed. The water-logged region was ripe for a disaster, and a second storm was expected to hit on New Year's Day. I-5 was closed near the Oregon border as was US Hwy. 101. One man died in a car accident when he hit a mudslide. The Reno, NV area had its worst flooding since 1997, which sustained $1 billion in damages. I-85, the major artery between northern CA and NV, was closed by an unprecedented mudslide for at least 2 days, as were other local roads.
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December 31
A 3.9 earthquake hit Kettleman City, CA. There were no damages or injuries.
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December 30
A livestock feedmill exploded from grain dust in Statesville, NC. One man was killed and another burned badly. More people would have been injured if it had occurred on the first shift. The fire lasted 24 hours.
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December 30
A train derailed in Yerkes, KY from a rock slide on the tracks, causing a small oil spill.
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December 29
A 32" gas line sprung a leak between Halfway and Halifax, KY, forcing the mandatory evacuation of the two communities.
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December 29
A coal train derailed near Fulton, IL.
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December 29
A train derailment in Savannah, GA caused passengers on an Amtrak train to be stuck onboard for 20 hours waiting for the tracks to be cleared.
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December 28
A Christmas tree caught on fire in the Disneyland hotel in Anaheim, CA, forcing the sudden evacuation of more than 2000 guests.
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December 28
A daycare center in San Antonio, TX was evacuated after a construction crew punctured a nearby gas line.
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December 28
Some homes and business in Rancho Mirage, CA were evacuated when a construction purposely punctured a gas line, thinking it was not in use.
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December 28
A freak accident in Harrisburg, PA occurred when a crane touched a powerline, and the current grounded through a natural gas line, causing a leak in the pipe and subsequent explosion. Clouds of smoke and fire shot out of the ground and the local neighborhood had to be evacuated. Gas leaked into the basement of a nearby house and ignited as well.
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December 27
About 8000 people were evacuated from some government office buildings in Indianopolis, IN after a bomb threat.
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December 27
The 3rd train derailment in less than 2 months in the western KS county of Trego caught the eye of federal investigators when 23 coal cars jumped the tracks.
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December 27
A bridge overpass collapsed onto I-70 in Washington County, PA. Fortunately no one was seriously injured. The bridge had been found to be structurally deficient, but state bridge engineers said it shouldn't have collapsed. A local university engineer said it was probably due to salt corrosion which cannot be detected.
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December 26
A rockslide in Montpelier, VT came crashing into town, causing the evacuation of about 50 people. Some of the rocks were estimated to weigh between 20-30 tons.
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December 26
A meth lab in a mobile home blew up in Knox County, IN as 2 police officers approached it to investigate after receiving a tip.
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December 25
A Christmas day mudslide blocked the Amtrak track between Portland and Seattle.
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December 25
A man was seriously injured when his apartment blew up in St. Louis, MO. The blast was so powerful he was thrown out the window, and adjacent units were damaged. Officials think the cause was a gas leak.
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December 23
A 3.6 earthquake was recorded in the Pacific Ocean off Eureka, CA in the morning, and a 4.7 earthquake was recorded in the afternoon.
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December 23
A gas main break forced the evacuation of an apartment building near Wayne State Univ. campus in Detroit, MI.
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December 23
A minor train derailment occurred near Jessup, MD when 6 cars went off the tracks.
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December 22
A propane delivery truck leaked gas in a neighborhood, prompting the evacuation of eight homes while the gas dissipated. The power was also cut to 30 homes to prevent any sparks.
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December 22
An underground transformer caught on fire in downtown Stamford, CT and caused the evacuation of a dozen businesses and an apartment complex.
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December 21
A fire broke in a meth lab in Langley, British Columbia, forcing the evacuation of the entire neighborhood.
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December 20
Three people were killed in a 3-story apartment building explosion in Bergenfield, NJ when a pit that was being excavated to remove an oil tank collapsed and pinched a gas line. Part of the building collapsed in the blast.
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December 20
A Scottsville, WV woman's trailer blew up when her kerosene heater exploded as she was lighting it.
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December 20
A construction worker broke a gas main and the fumes from the leak ignited, blowing up a 47-year old hardware store business in a strip mall, and damaged adjacent businesses. Fortunately no one was killed or seriously injured.
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December 20
An explosion occurred on the porch of a house near a mosque in Cincinnati, Ohio. The house is owned by the Islamic Association of Cincinnati.
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December 19
A seaplane exploded in midair and crashed within site of high-rise buildings in Miami, FL. At least 19 people were killed.
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December 19
A 3.0 earthquake hit Louisiana, which was not even felt by most people. There was some light damage at La Place. arthquakes are very rare there but there are active faults.
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December 19
A new furnace just installed that day in a Silver Spring, MD house quit working and exploded after the occupants left. Fortunately no one was injured and the house was salvageable.
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December 19
A construction crew punctured a gas line i San Dimas, CA, causing the evacuation of a nearby apartment building and businesses.
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December 19
A building in Minneapolis, MN blew up when gas fumes leaked. Firefighters had shut off the gas, but the fumes ignited anyway.
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December 19
A train derailed when a bridge trestle collapsed in Marietta, Ohio. Eight coal cars fell onto the street below. The bridge was just inspected 5 months ago. Fortunately the accident occurred at 2 am when there was little or no traffice on the road.
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December 18
About 100 homes had to be evacuated in Lafayette, LA when a gas line leak that was being repaired caught fire. Gas also leaked into the sewer system, prompting the evacuation of the potentially very dangerous situation.
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December 18
Ali Warrayat drove his car through a Chandler, AZ Home Depot and told authorities that he wanted to cause an explosion. When that failed, he allegedly attempted to light the dispersed chemicals to cause a fire, which was quickly extinguished. He told authorities that he wanted to be killed or deported.
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December 17
A faulty machine was blamed for extremely high levels of carbon monoxide at a hockey game in Chicago, which led to the evacuation of the arena. No one could figure out why the players were playing so poorly at first, until the levels were found to be at 400 ppm.
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December 17
Five empty train cars derailed in Meridian, MS. They had been carrying propylene oxide, but there were no injuries or damage.
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December 16
A gas pipeline exploded in Palo Pinto, Texas and shook residents for miles around. The light was seen at a 100-mile radius. Secondary fires were started within a one-mile radius. http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,178903,00.html

December 15
An ice storm crippled parts of the Carolinas, Georgia and Virginia, causing thousands of customers to lose power. At its peak Duke power had 700,000 without power in the Carolinas. One man died when a tree weighted down with ice crashed through his house. Many were without power for a week.
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December 14
A gas leak from utility work in Jersey City, NJ caused the evacuation of several local schools.
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December 14
A dam broke near Lesterville, MO after heavy rains, forcing the evacuation of local residents.
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December 13
An explosion occurred at a Westminster, CO apartment from a gas leak, causing 100 people to be evacuated into the cold night. Damage was confined to the boiler room.
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December 13
Construction crews hit a gas line in Jacksonville, FL. The resulting leak led to the evacuation of about 500 local residents and the closing of several blocks of streets.
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December 13
An explosion occurred in a Super 8 motel south of Lake City, FL when a meth lab exploded. All the local occupants had to be evacuated. A man was arrested for starting the explosion, who had obtained chemicals in Houston and was on his way to Miami to sell the drugs.
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December 12
A gas explosion that occurred at a Petersburg, PA apartment complex appeared to be caused by the intentional tampering of gas lines. Fortunately there were no injuries.
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December 11
A house in Columbus, Ohio exploded. Fortunately, the family was away. The cause was unknown.
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December 9
A Greene Co., Ohio exploded from a leaking propane tank leak.
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December 9
A house in Horseheads, NY blew up and sent 5 people to the hospital and damaged several nearby buildings. The cause appeared to be from a natural gas leak.
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December 9
Two locomotives derailed when they sideswiped each other in Fremont, NE.
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December 9
A man in Greene County, Ohio was sent to the hospital when his house exploded from a gas leak.
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December 9
An unusual snowstorm hit the northeast and knocked out power to thousands. In southeastern MA 150,000 people lost power. As of 12/11, 4500 were still without power in Eastham, MA. There were reports of 100 mph gusts on Cape Cod in a sudden storm described as an "explosion."
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December 8
A jet slid off the runway at Midway International Airport in Chicago, IL while landing in a snowstorm. A 6-year old boy was killed and at least 8 people were injured.
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December 8
Twenty-seven train cars derailed in Clarendon, TX.
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December 8
A train derailed in Edgewood, MD, delaying rail traffic. There were no injuries.
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December 8
A drug lab apparently exploded in a condo in a million-dollar Santa Barbara, CA neighborhood.
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December 7
A 30-car train derailment occurred in Dothan, AL, spilling wood chips.
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December 6
Two grain bins collapsed at a Denison, Iowa ethanol plant. The cause was unknown. The collapse ruptured a gas line, and a special team had to shut it off.
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December 5
A 118-car train carrying grain derailed in Helena, MT.
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December 5
Forty-one coal train cars derailed in Steele, ND. Cleanup will take a month.
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December 3
A small wildfire in Wise County, Texas quickly grew to consume 5000 acres, causing the evacuation of local residents.
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December 2
A 4.1 earthquake hit near Big Bear, CA. There were no reported injuries or damage.
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December 1
An explosion in an electrical room in a Goleta, CA high school knocked out power to part of the school and forced its evacuation.
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December 1
Two leaking propane tanks at a construction site caused the evacuation of 10 people from their homes in Williston, ND.
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December 1
A Hampton, VA police officer's house exploded and caught fire.
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December 1
An airplane fuel tanker caught on fire in Ankeny, Iowa, causing the evacuation of several local businesses. A disaster was prevented by the freezing temperatures, which prevented an explosion.
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November 30
Investigators in Shiawassee County, MI think they have identified the cause of the 9/3/05 explosion that killed 6 of 8 children in the home. A hot water heater recently purchased from Home Depot had a defective valve made in Mexico. The units were recalled but were on the shelf for 3 weeks available for purchase. The owner could not get the pilot light to stay lit and turned the heater off, but gas apparently continued to leak for 3 days and filled up the basement. When the gas ignited, the explosion almost knocked people over 10 miles away, and they thought it was right next door. Be sure that you do not have one of the defective hot water heaters. The valves are Robert Shaw R-110 Series Gas Control Valves made between 7/25-8/14 of 2005. Production date codes are 5-31 and 5-33. They are on various makes and models, and could have been used in repairs. If you think you may have one, call Robert Shaw at 1-888-225-1071.
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November 30
A house near Casper, WY exploded from a propane leak, killing one woman and throwing her husband out the window. This would be the 2nd such explosion in the county this year.
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November 30
A wildfire sparked on a military bombing range burned 27,000 acres in Floyd, NM and forced dozens of people and a local school to evacuate.
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November 30
A grain train derailed in Bismarck, ND at Southwest Grain, the second this year.
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November 29
Twenty-two train cars derailed in WaKeeney, KS, spilling coal.
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November 29
A house in Minneapolis, MN exploded from a gas leak inside the house.
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November 29
About 20,000 customers in Detroit, MI lost power when a malfunction occurred at an electrical station. A tunnel to Canada was temporarily closed.
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November 28
According to the SD Public Utilities Commission, an unprecedented number of people are without power after wind, snow and ice knocked down 8000 power poles and 10,000 miles of powerlines. There were still 40,000 customers without power 24 hrs. later.
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November 28
A power station in Columbus, Ohio exploded, sending fireballs skyward and causing 35,000 customers to lose power. Six families were evacuated and some schools were closed.
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November 27
More than 50,000 acres of OK grasslands were burned in wildfires, destroying 50 homes. The governor declared the area a disaster.
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November 27
Eight tornadoes, 2 of which were F3, hit AR. The storms killed at least 1 and left a path of total devastation in their wake.
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November 26
A train derailed in Laurel, MT, spilling 439 tons of corn.
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November 26
A gas leak destroyed a mobile home in Carlyle, IL.
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November 26
A house was destroyed in an explosion in Franklin County, MO. A gas leak was thought to be the cause.
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November 26
A bomb was exploded outside of the Liberty County, GA courthouse.
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November 24
Two locomotives and 45 train cars derailed in Momence, IL. Denatured alcohol began leaking. causing the evacuation of about 25 homes because of the threat of fire.
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November 24
A man was badly injured when his car exploded in Somerville, MA.
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November 23
A shallow 4.1 earthquake struck the area east-northeast of Deming, WA. Some people heard a boom before the quake hit.
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November 23
A truck hauling 8700 gallons of gasoline exploded on I-95 in Washington, D.C., closing the interstate. Fortunately, no one was injured.
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November 23
A shallow 4.1 earthquake struck the area east-northeast of Deming, WA. Some people heard a boom before the quake hit.
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November 23
A Newton, NJ outpatient facility was evacuated after an unusual smell permeated the building, causing headaches among some of the occupants. The cause was never determined. This was the 2nd such event in 2 days (see below).
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November 23
A truck hauling 8700 gallons of gasoline exploded on I-95 in Washington, D.C., closing the interstate. Fortunately, no one was injured.
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November 23
A commuter train struck cars stopped on the tracks during rush hour in Chicago, injuring 16 people. One car burst into flames. The cars appeared to have gone around a crossing gate in spite of the danger, which locals say is not unusual. Trains normally come down the track at almost 70 mph.
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November 23
A bean bin exploded in Morrill, NE, when poor maintenance allowed moisture to enter the container. Local residents had complained about the stench for 2 months, but the owner Dave Hergert denied his facility was the source. When he finally cleaned out the bin, the fermenting beans exploded when oxygen hit the gas. The blast rocked Main St. and blew open doors of some businesses.
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November 22
Power was twice knocked out to about 1000 residents on Sitka Island, AK from a mudslide. The area has received record rainfalls recently.
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November 22
A house in Suffolk, VA was damaged when a propane tank in the backyard leaked gas into the house and ignited. The blast shattered every window. Since chemicals are added to cause a smell, investigators don't understand why the leak wasn't smelled by the occupants.
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November 22
A train carrying hazardous materials derailed in Forest Park, a suburb of Chicago. Two cars carried propane and another phenol.
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November 22
An office building was evacuated in Kensington, MD after an unusual odor was smelled in the building, causing some people to experience throat and eye irritation. Officials blamed it on a nearby hair salon.
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November 22
A gas leak and fire caused by a transformer explosion caused the evacuation of an apartment complex in Atlanta, GA. About 160 families were displaced.
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November 22
A major gas leak in Carbondale, IL prompted a large-scale evacuation, including part of the Southern Illinois Univ. campus.
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November 21
A propane tanker turned over in Suffolk, VA, forcing officials to evacuate a subdivision for fear of an explosion. Other residents were asked not to use electricity to prevent any sparks.
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November 21
A refinery in Houston, TX was evacuated when a power outage caused black smoke to billow from its flares.
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November 21
A school of over 400 pre-school to 3rd grade students in Salem, NJ was evacuated after contractors struck a nearby gas main while digging. Parents were not even contacted until an hour after the accident. The students were taken across the street to the gym to wait, where some of them held hands and sang "We Are Family." (We're not making this up.)
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November 20
About 3000 guests were evacuated from an Anaheim, CA hotel when an arsonist set fire to the structure.
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November 20
About 90,000 residents around San Leandro, CA lost power from a malfunctioning relay.
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November 19
The occupants of 2 homes were evacuated in Yelm, WA after police made a routine stop on a vehicle for a traffic violation and discovered an explosive device in the trunk, along with meth lab equipment. Local streets were also closed.
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November 19
A train derailed near the Route 11 bridge in Oswego Co., NY. Twenty-eight cars derailed, 6 of which carried hazardous materials including chlorine and sodium hydroxide.
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November 18
A 3900-acre wildfire in Ventura County, CA threatened 200 homes before it was contained.
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November 18
Two people were injured in an explosion in an unfinished home in Selma, IN. A 2nd-story gas pipe was covered with duct tape, allowing gas to leak and explode when the pilot light was lit.
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November 16
A chemical leak in a downtown Los Angeles factory caused the evacuation of about 800 people from the surrounding area and the closure of local roads.
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November 16
A woman's house was destroyed in an explosion in Fergus Falls, MN from ignition of leaking gas.
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November 16
Two men were injured in Udall, KS when there was an explosion in a new house as they tried to light the furnace. The house was destroyed.
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November 16
A man was severely burned and his mobile home was destroyed in Flat, TX when he lit his propane heater that was leaking.
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November 16
Six coal cars derailed in Homestead, PA.
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November 16
A house in Madison, TN was ruined in a mysterious explosion that knocked the house off its foundation. The house has no natural gas so a leak was not the cause. Neighbors thought it was an earthquake.
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November 15
A train derailed in Burket, IN when the rear set of wheels came off a car. The accident would have been much worse if the front set had come off instead, because the car would have turned over and triggered a major accident. The wheels almost went through a local business.
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November 15
A train derailment in Jones, OK forced the evacuation of local residents. One car was carrying molten sulfur.
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November 15
A house in Leavenworth, KS blew up from an explosion in a meth lab, killing one man. Authorities also found an 18" pipe bomb inside.
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November 15
A train derailed west of Rawlins, WY, damaging 500' of track.
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November 14
A train derailment at Fort Hood, TX damaged 11 military tanks.
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November 14
A propane storage facility had a series of explosions as tank after tank blew up. The area within a half-mile was evacuated.
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November 14
A house southwest of Wichita, KS was destroyed in a natural gas explosion, killing the 2 occupants. Authorities say they will never know what caused the natural gas leak.
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November 13
A tornado caused the evacuation of people in two counties northwest of Des Moines, Iowa. One person was killed.
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November 13
A man in Lovely, KY was killed when a pipe bomb exploded.
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November 11
A train derailed in Tulsa, OK and hit a bridge column on an exit ramp of US 75, forcing the closure of the exit.
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November 10
An explosion at an asphalt plant in Kings Mountain, NC killed on man.
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November 9
A gas explosion in Lexington, MA destroyed a historic house. The 2 occupants barely escaped with their lives. Officials hastily cut off the gas to 1800 homes and businesses. It was later found that the line was overpressurized, which almost caused another 7 houses to explode. Hundreds of people had to leave town to find a place to stay. Some businesses were still without gas a week later.
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November 8
A house in Pedley, CA exploded when a broken gas line leaked. Officials evacuated 45 homes after gas was smelled in the area.
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November 6
A major rock slide on I-90 east of Snoqualmie Pass in the Cascades of WA caused the closure of the interstate and major traffic jams on the alternate routes. The slide was 6 miles east of a 9/11 slide that killed 3 women.
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November 6
An F3 tornado tore through IN and KY, killing at least 22 people and injuring 200. The tornado left a path of damage as wide as a football field for 10 miles, destroying 100 mobile homes in Newburgh, IN. The storm left 25,000 people without power and more as it passed through WV.
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November 6
A natural gas pipeline blew up north of Waskom, TX, shaking houses in the area and causing a local evacuation. This was the 2nd such explosion in the area this year.
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November 6
A train carrying coal derailed in Prosperity, SC. Friction on a car ignited 4 fires along the tracks and a spring was thrown into a nearby house before the train finally derailed.
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November 5
A coal train derailed in Fort Morgan, CO.
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November 5
A travelling meth lab inside a van blew up in a Wal-mart parking lot in Logan, Ohio, releasing a toxic cloud of ammonia gas.
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November 5
A natural gas furnace blew up in a vacant house in Aurora, CO, seriously burning a real estate employee.
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November 4
A train derailed in Harlingen, TX, blocking traffic downtown. There was no major damage.
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November 3
A massive power outage left 40,000 customers without power from Oakdale to Sonora, CA and most of Calaveras county.
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October 31
There were 12-15 explosions of propane tanks at a vehicle rental facility in San Francisco, CA. The site is surrounded by a residential area.
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October 31
A train derailment in Mauk, GA occurred when a train ran into the back of another. There were no serious damages but fuel leaked, requiring a hazmat team.
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October 30
A 4.5 earthquake hit in western MT and eastern ID. There was no damage reported.
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October 29
A mild 2.4 earthquake hit the town of Sorroco, NM. Because the quake was so shallow, the tremor was felt by town residents.
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October 28
A school in Middletown, DE was evacuated after a boiler blew up from a natural gas explosion.
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October 27
Hurricane Katrina left MS and LA facing the worst wildfire threat in history after a 7-week drought. Officials said that there are currently 30-40 forest fires a day in the southern part of MS.
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October 27
An explosion destroyed a house in Eaton, WI.
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October 26
A train derailed in Perry Township, Ohio. One car was carrying acetone, but fortunately only about 200 gallons leaked.
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October 25
A grain elevator exploded in Vernon Center, MN and injured 6 people.
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October 25
A sudden snowstorm left thousands without power in VT and other states. At the worst, atleast 70,000 customers were powerless. As much as 20" of wet snow fell in parts of the state.
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October 24
Hurricane Wilma, once the strongest hurricane ever measured, capped a record year for tropical storms as it swept through Mexico, dropping 64" of rain on Isla Mujeres and killing at least 7. It then hit FL south of Naples, killing 7 and leaving more than 1/3 of the state (6 million people) without power, more than from Katrina. Top wind speed was 125 mph. The insurance industry estimates losses to be up to $10 billion. The entire Keys were under a boil water advisory as well as a few cities. Florida Power & Light said that parts of Palm Beach County would not get power until Nov. 22 because damage was as bad as from Hurrican Andrew. Thousands of miles of powerlines must be restrung after an estimated 15,000 snapped power poles are replaced. The storm left the most people without power in FPL's history. A sinkhole on I-95 delayed supplies. Port Everglades was without power, where one of the largest tank farms in the nation is located, which handles 14 million tons of petroleum products/year and supplies the Florida panhandle. This was top priority for power restoration lest Florida's gas supply was endangered. Some residents were left without gas or water.
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October 24
A freight train derailed in Northfield Township, MI. Police suspected vandals tampered with a switch.
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October 23
A mysterious illness overcame about a dozen people during Mass in a Wethersfield, CT church, forcing the evacuation of 400 parishioners. The symptoms were dizziness, nausea and fainting.
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October 23
About 12,000 customers lost power in Snohomish County, WA. The cause of the failure was not known.
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October 22
A grain elevator in Wendell, MN exploded. No one was hurt.
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October 21
A train derailment involving hazardous materials occurred in Fort Edward, NY. The train was carrying anhydrous ammonia and sodium hydroxide. More than 1300 residents were evacuated from the area in 8/00 during a similar incident when a tanker leaked ammonia, which took 3 days to stop.
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October 21
Two locomotives collided head-on in Millbury, Ohio. The crash shook houses up to several blocks away. No hazardous materials were involved. This was the 2nd Norfolk Southern derailment in 3 days and the 3rd in about a month to occur in the area.
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October 21
A vitamin plant in Arcadia, WI blew up and sent 2 workers to the hospital.
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October 20
A man was critically injured in an explosion which destroyed his house in Edwardsville, KS.
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October 20
A storage building in Kalida, Ohio was destroyed by an explosion, thought to have been caused by a propane leak.
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October 19
An explosion in a Cleveland, Ohio neighborhood shattered almost 100 windows in 11 homes. It was caused by a contractor who lit gasoline to burn brush.
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October 19
A train derailment in Toledo, Ohio caused a traffic jam for hours.
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October 18
Five thousand residents of Taunton, MA were in a state of emergency and had to be evacuated when a dam threatened to burst from recent floods.
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October 17
A gasoline tanker exploded on I-5 in Los Angeles, CA, killing one and forcing the closure of the interstate.
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October 17
A bomb exploded outside of a drug store in Winter Park, FL.
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October 16
Twenty-eight cars of a train derailed south of Decorah, Iowa, spilling 98,000 bushels of corn.
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October 16
A Houston, TX refinery exploded when it was restarted after being closed since Hurricane Rita.
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October 15
One person was killed and hundreds of homes were evacuated when a train derailed in Texarkana, AR and a tanker containing propylene exploded. The death occurred when the blast destroyed a nearby house. Another home and several vehicles were also destroyed. Thousands of people in a 2 X 5 mile area were asked to evacuate. Smoke from fire was so thick witnesses said it blocked out the sunlight. The accident was caused by a freight train hitting another one in a freight yard causing 8 cars to derail. Deputies responding to the accident later complained of health problems from inhaling the toxic smoke.
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October 14
An explosion at a wood processing plant in Schofield, WI killed one person, shook residences and was heard for miles around.
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October 13
A train derailed in Shohola, PA. The train was carrying petroleum products but only flour and grain were spilled. The train derailed near the Delaware R. and a huge evacuation was initially planned when the train's manifest was unavailable. The derailment blocked access to several homes.
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October 12
A vacant house in Merritt, TN was destroyed in an explosion of unknown origin.
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October 12
A train carrying garbage derailed in Hartsville, SC.
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October 12
Eighteen train cars derailed in Amsterdam, NY. Ten were empty and the rest were carrying steel, pulpwood, soybean oil and ignet. There were no injuries. The accident was found to have been caused by an overheated journal in a wheel. The abnormal heat was detected by a wayside detector and the train was in the process of being stopped, but derailed first.
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October 11
The third major power outage in less than a month struck Los Angeles, leaving as many as 1000 customers without power for most of the day. City Hall and the police headquarters had to be run on generators.
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October 11
Nine empty cars of a coal train derailed west of Kremmling, CO.
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October 10
A man in Dixon, Iowa died when his house exploded and caught on fire.
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October 10
An underground transformer exploded in San Jose, CA, leaving about 4000 residents without power.
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October 10
A man in Payneville, KY was killed when a propane line in his house leaked and exploded.
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October 10
A heavy wet snowfall in the area around Denver, CO left about 35,000 people without power when limbs broke and snapped power lines. Interstate 70 was closed near Aurora. About 8,000 people went without power for 2 days. The storm killed 3 people.
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October 8
Two trains carrying coal derailed between Wright and Douglas, WY. A series of coal derailments in the Powder River Basin has helped boost coal prices to all-time highs in WY.
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October 8
A meth lab exploded in a St. Cloud, FL condo.
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October 7
A train derailment in Terre Haute, IN delayed traffic for 4 hours.
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October 7
Twenty apartment residents in Miami, FL were evacuated when an explosion of unknown origin occurred inside the laundry. A 12-year old recevied serious injuries.
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October 6-15
The northeast received 7 straight days of rain, causing extensive flooding and killing at least 10 people. From 10/6-10/8, 9-10" of rain fell in New England. About 1000 residents had to evacuate from their homes in New Hampshire, perhaps the hardest hit state. Flood damage was extensive. The governor said it was the worst flooding in 25 years. NH, NJ and MA declared an emergency and asked for a federal disaster declaration. In one area, 5 miles of power poles were washed away, along with the road. Estimated damage is in the millions of dollars and a thousand people were left homeless. Eight people were killed in MA and thousands evacuated. Worcester, MA was inundated with 4' of water. Because of the danger of contaminated water, NH officials distributed water-testing kits.
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October 6
A wildfire spread from Mexico into California and caused the evacuation of 150 homes in Marron Valley. It burned 3000 acres, two-thirds of it in the U.S.,and was only 10% contained.
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October 6
A train derailed in Louisa, VA for the 2nd time in 2 months at almost the exact same location. It took hours to clear the tracks but there was no major damage or injuries.
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October 6
A 6000-acre wildfire in San Timoteo Canyon, CA, 60 miles east of LA, had caused the evacuation of more than 100 homes, and closed a freeway, but was only 25% contained.
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October 6
A plastics plant in Point Comfort, Texas exploded, sending plumes of black smoke into the air. Local residents were asked to stay indoors and highways in the area were closed.
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October 6
A violent explosion occurred at a Phoenix, NY farmhouse, killing 1 and injuring 9 others. The blast was so powerful that it destroyed the 2-story building and was heard miles away. Local residents thought it was an earthquake.
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October 6
Construction workers in Cooper City, FL struck a buried gas line, leading to a chaotic evacuation of a local school and neighborhood due to the possibility of an immediate explosion.
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October 6
A house in Schenectady, NY was destroyed by an explosion thought to be caused by a gas leak. Adjacent houses were damaged in the ensuing fire. The violent blast shook the ground, according to witnesses.
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October 6
A house in Tomstown, PA was destroyed in an explosion of unknown origin. The occupants managed to escape unharmed. The cause was later ascertained to be a buildup of methane in the basement, which is extremely rare.
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October 6
A housing and storage facility at the Schroeppel and Volney town line in NY killed one person. Migrant workers were said to be living there.
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October 5
An Otsego, MI man died when his propane hot water heater exploded and the subsequent fire destroyed his house. The hot water heater was thought to be faulty.
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October 5
A coal train derailed east of Bridgeport, NB, dumping tons of coal.
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October 5
A snow storm dumped 14" of snow on eastern MT, snapping limbs and leaving many people without power. Parts of the northern plains received as much as 24" of snow. At least 11,000 people in ND lost power.
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October 4
Winds up to 84 mph in Confier, CO blew down a powerline, started a wildfire and led to the evacuation of 200 families.
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October 4
A train carrying potentially hazardous propylene derailed in Grimes County, TX. Fortunately nothing was spilled.
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October 4
A meth lab in a trailer exploded and killed a woman in Fort Wayne, IN. Her brother was charged with her death.
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October 2
A house in Flint, MI exploded from a gas leak, seriously injuring the occupants who were burned and thrown out of windows and into the street.
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October 2
An explosion and fire at a Johnstown, CO grain elevator led to the evacuation of almost 100 local residents.
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October 1
A depressed man in Long Beach, NY threatened to commit suicide by blowing up a propane tank. Officers evacuated 4 nearby houses and stopped traffic until the man was subdued.
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October 1
A suicide bomber, Joel Henry Hinrichs, killed himself in an explosion outside a football stadium in Tulsa, OK. Hinrichs attended the same mosque that Zacarias Moussaoui attended, and a ticket to Algeria was found in his apartment linked to his Pakistani roommate. Five others are possibly involved with the bombing.
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September 30
A 4.1 earthquake hit near Steamboat Springs, CO. The quake rattled houses but caused no major damage.
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September 30
A wildfire in Burbank, CA suddenly expanded to 700 acres and prompted an evacuation of local residents.
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September 29
A wildfire near Chatsworth, CA, on the northwest edge of LA, quadrupled in size in 24 hours, burned 16,975 acres and was only 5% contained. Hundreds of people were forced to evacuate and some were left homeless.
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September 29
An earthquake swarm was felt near Clear Creek, ID for the past week. The greatest magnitude measured was 3.7, which is not usually felt by humans. Geologists believe the quakes are shallow and more likely to be felt.
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September 29
About 27,000 people lost power in Western NY when a powerful storm passed through, knocking down power poles which took most of the day to replace. About 13,000 lost power in NH.
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September 28
Thirty people were injured when an Amtrak train struck a rock on the tracks near De Soto, MO and derailed.
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September 28
About 50 homes in Littleton, MA were evacuated after residents smelled a gas leak, caused when the Littleton Water Dept. work crew hit a gas main.
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September 28
A 600-acre wildfire near Gifford, WA threatened a dozen houses and residents had to evacuate.
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September 28
Two trains derailed in Copeville, Texas. One of the rail cars was carrying chlorine gas, but fortunately did not leak. There were no injuries or other problems.
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September 26
Six train cars carrying rock derailed in a Palmetto, FL neighborhood.
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September 26
A Canadian train derailed just north of the ID panhandle and dumped 100 metric tons of potash into the pristine Moyie River, which flows into the U.S.
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September 25
A West Kensington, PA apartment house was destroyed in an explosion and fire, leaving the occupants homeless. The adjacent house partially collapsed and others were damaged.
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September 24
Hurricane Rita struck the Gulf Coast with the eye passing just east of Sabine Pass, TX. The storm quickly weakened from a Category 3 to 2. The storm was preceded by a nightmarish evacuation of 2.5 million people from the Houston area, with massive 100-mile traffic jams and people stuck for hours on the interstate running out of gas. In a tragic incident, a bus evacuating senior citizens exploded into flames, killing 23 and creating a 20 mile-traffic jam. More than 1 million customers were left without power in LA, TX, AR and MS. The evacuation killed about 60 people. Exact numbers are not available, but it appears that about 100 deaths resulted from the storm, although few were actually killed directly by the hurricane. Five days after the storm, conditions were still primitive in Texas where some residents were living in tents and bathing in the Neches River. Montgomery County, Texas had a boil water notice due to low pressure. Hundreds of thousands of people may be without electricity for two months in southeast Texas.
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September 24
A 3.4 earthquake struck northern Maine. The epicenter was near Ayers Junction.
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September 22
A train carrying radioactive materials derailed near the Buffalo-Cheektowaga city line in NY. Fortunately, no materials were spilled.
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September 22
The strongest temblor at 4.7 in an earthquake swarm was felt in Taft, CA. It was preceded 4 minutes earlier by a 4.0 quake.
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September 20
A train carrying tanker cars derailed in South Toledo, Ohio, forced local residents to evacuate from their homes twice.
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September 20
A power outage in Burley, ID left most of the city without power for over 2 hours. Officials could not explain the cause, saying that "there was a terrific fireball."
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September 20
More than 25,000 customers lost power in Jackson Co., OR. Most had their power restored after a half-hour. The cause was a faulty transmission line at the CA/OR border.
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September 19
A wildfire in Farmer's Korner, CO caused the evacuation of dozens of residents.
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September 18
Some residents of El Rito, NM were evacuated because of a wildfire. Officials said they could not stop it from reaching populated areas.
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September 18
A manhole cover exploded in Berkeley, CA, colliding with a car and injuring the driver, while knocking out the power to 2200 customers.
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September 18
An explosion at a Monroe, Ohio propane pipeline terminal sent flames 300' skyward and killed 1 person. Authorities speculate that the cause was a faulty valve. The blast shook area residences.
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September 18
A train derailed in Montgomery County, TX, blocking traffic for hours. Locals said it felt like an earthquake. Fifteen cars derailed and some did not stop moving until 200 yards from the track. The train was carrying paper products and plywood.
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September 18
Nine train cars carrying grain derailed in Belden, CA. The line through Feather River Canyon was closed until 600' of rail can be replaced.
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September 17
A 5-car commuter train derailed in Chicago, IL, killing 2 women and injuring at least 80 people.
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September 16
A water heater exploded in a Cornersville, TN school cafeteria, sending at least 13 students to the hospital and critically injuring 1 worker.
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September 16
An explosion at a Pittsburgh, PA steel plant sent 3 workers to the hospital, and was so powerful that a resident across the river was thrown from her couch. The explosion was caused by hot slag coming into contact with water.
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September 16
About 130,000 customers in eastern NC lost power when Hurricane Ophelia brushed by the NC coast. The slow-moving storm dumped rain over the coast, with more than 12" of rain recorded at the mouth of the Cape Fear River.
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September 16
A small wildfire broke out in Upper Lake, CA and destroyed 3 homes and damaged a 4th.
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September 15
A natural gas explosion in a Livingston, MT neighborhood destroyed 2 houses and was felt a mile away. Four people were sent to the hospital and many homes suffered damage. The blast was thought to have been caused by a backhoe that damaged a nearby pipe.
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September 15
Two trains crashed into each other in Shepherd, TX, killing one employee and derailing more than 20 train cars. The accident initiated a brief evacuation of several hundred local residents. The accident was caused by an improperly positioned switch. The FBI ruled out terrorism.
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September 15
An underground stormwater collection tank exploded at a chemical recycling business in Tacoma, WA leading to the evacuation of several local businesses, which were shaken in the blast.
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September 14
An explosion in Tulsa, OK leveled several outbuildings and a trailer. Investigators say the cause was arson.
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September 14
An huge landslide on Mt. Stellar, 240 miles east of Anchorage, AK, was recorded on seismic instruments around the world. The slide was unprecedented in magnitude with a force equivalent to a 3.8 earthquake.
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September 13
The house of a Omaha, NE man was destroyed in an explosion. He was facing sentencing for sexual assault of a minor, and authorities said the explosion was caused when someone fed an external gas line into his trailer. The blast rocked the whole neighborhood and could have easily damaged nearby homes.
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September 13
Twenty-six coal train cars derailed near Kearney, NB.
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September 12
A major power outage hit Los Angeles after utility workers incorrectly cut some cables. It is not known how many homes and businesses were affected, but estimates are that about 2 million people were impacted. The outage coincidentally comes after al-Qaida threatened to hit LA and Melbourne, Australia with a terrorist attack. Earlier, a city spokesman said that terrorism had not been ruled out. The outage ranged to about 50 miles outside the city. The Valero Energy refinery at Wilmington, CA which process 78,000 barrels/day experienced a total power failure, along with 2 other refineries in the area. The Conoco-Phillips refinery was forced into a flare-off, when chemicals are burned and released into the atmosphere, which forced the evacuation of the local Harbor College. Local residents were advised to remain indoors. Gasoline prices rose 7 cents at area stations as a result of the refinery shutdowns.
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September 12
An explosion in Salinas, CA severely damaged a home and injured one occupant. The blast led authorities to find an unexploded bomb inside, with 4 adults and one child who gave conflicting accounts of the incident.
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September 12
A Greenville, SC chemical plant exploded, leading to the evacuation of 2000 students from 3 area schools. One worker was killed in the blast.
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September 12
A stately, Weston, MA home was destroyed when a contractor struck a natural gas line, and leaking gas was soon ignited. A 3-alarm fire was triggered.
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September 12
Five train cars derailed in Pawnee, OK and blocked traffic. One car was carrying sodium bisulfite, but there were no leaks.
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September 11
An 1100-acre wildfire in Okanogan County, WA was contained which had burned one house and forced the evacuation of a dozen homes and cabins.
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September 11
Three workers were injured in an explosion at an Akron, Ohio steel plant when metal dust ignited.
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September 11
A rockslide on I-90 in WA near Snoqualmie Pass killed three women and blocked the interstate.
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September 10
Forty train cars carrying coal derailed in Hanna, WY.
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September 9
An explosion in a Chico, CA house caused extensive damage to the home. The explosion occured when an occupant turned off a light switch, igniting some type of gas inside. Authorities suspect an unusual buildup of methane gas, but an investigation is pending.
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September 8
A Harmony, IN house was destroyed in an explosion that severely burned a man inside. The blast was so strong that it shattered windows in the house across the street. When the neighbors looked outside the house was flattened.
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September 8
Twenty-five coal train cars derailed in Utica, NE.
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September 7
A conductorless commuter train derailed during rush hour in NY city with about 60 people on board. No one was injured.
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September 6
A freight train derailed in Yorba Linda, CA, stranding train commuters.
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September 5
A squirrel caused a major fire at a Tampa, FL substation that could be seen for miles. About 2000 customers lost power for 4 hours.
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September 5
A Detroit, MI house was destroyed in an explosion. The blast knocked a nearby house off its foundation. The cause is unknown, though a fire official said a gas line appeared to have been sabotaged.
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September 5
A minor 2.5 earthquake hit northeast KY.
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September 4
A 3.3 earthquake struck 80 miles SW of Eureka, CA in the Pacific Ocean. Experts warned Californians to get ready for the "Big One" by assembling a survival kit and being prepared. Contrasted with Hurricane Katrina which hit New Orleans, they pointed out that an earthquake strikes without warning. Their main concern is the vast number of homeless for a major period of time after such an earthquake.
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September 3
Another manhole cover explosed in San Francisco, albeit less severely, like the August 19 incident.
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September 3
A camper trailer exploded at Valley of the Rogue State Park in OR, just after the owner installed a new propane regulator. The cause was a leak from regulator which ignited. The man was seriously burned.
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September 3
An explosion in Caledonia Township, MI killed 6 family members and injured more. A gas leak was thought to be the cause, although an investigation has not determined this yet. The house was totally destroyed. The blast knocked people down in their homes up to 10 miles away, where they thought the blast was next door. All of the victims were teenagers or less. A couple lost 6 of their grandchildren and the other 2 are in critical condition. A faulty hot water heater valve made in Mexico was thought to be the cause.
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September 2
A suicidal driver intentionally drove his car into some gas pumps at a Staten Island, NY gas station, injuring 3 people including himself.
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September 1
A 5.1 earthquake hit near Obsidian Butte. The quake shook buildings 100 miles west in San Diego. Dozens of small earthquakes have struck CA since 8/31.
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August 30
A train derailment in South Hutchinson, KS leaked 30,000 gallons of ethanol, leading to the evacuation of about 50 homes for several days for fear of an explosion. About 100 people were affected.
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August 29
A Kensington, PA house exploded, destroying 4 homes and injuring 2 people. A natural gas leak is suspected. A firefighter's adjacent house was also destroyed.
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August 29
The Deer Creek fire in Selma, OR was 60% contained after burning 5 homes and threatening 100, but evacuated residents were allowed to return home.
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August 25-29
Hurricane Katrina brushed Florida, where it caused estimated damage as high as $2 billion, left at least 4 dead and more than 1.3 million customers without power. It then came ashore on 8/29 just east of New Orleans, LA, leaving tens of thousands homeless. The death toll was estimated to be in the thousands-10,000 by some computer models. The mayor of New Orleans pleaded with people to not return home because there was little left after the flooding and that he didn't know when life would return to normal. He said that the nation would be shocked at the final death toll, and that hazardous materials were mixing with the floodwaters. A series of explosions at a chemical plant was assessed by state health officials, who spotted a major fuel leak. Anarchy was breaking out in places as shots were fired at rescue workers, while looting was rampant. Thousands were left stranded in horrid conditions in the Superdome. A 28-foot storm surge hit MS, and about 1.3 million customers were without power. It would not be restored for most for at least a week. The entire state of AL was left without power. A section of I-10 was washed away near Gulfport, MS. Eight major refineries were closed by the storm, while the production of 2 was cut. A huge Valero Energy refinery in St. Charles, LA was estimated to be closed for at least a week, which sent gas prices higher. US refinery capacity was reduced by more than 10%. Four of the refineries were scheduled to resume operation the 1st week of September, but 70% of oil production and 50% of natural gas production were shut down and will be a long time recovering. Oil prices hit a record $70.80/barrel. About 7 million acres of MS forests were destroyed, creating a dangerous potential for wildfires.
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August 28
A 6500-acre fire near Elko, NV briefly threatened some homes before firefighters controlled it.
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August 28
A 4980-acre wildfire in Palm Springs, CA forced the evacuation of 100 homes.
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August 28
A train car leaking dangerous styrene in Cincinnati, Ohio caused the evacuation of local schools and neighborhoods. The mayor declared a state of emergency and curfew. The leak spewed a plume of white smoke 1-200' skyward.
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August 27
A mysterious explosion occurred in a Boardman, Ohio house, forcing the owner to jump out of a window to escape death. The ensuing fire destroyed the house.
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August 27
A wildfire at La Pine State Park forced the evacuation of all campers and 200 adjacent homes.
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August 27
The Utah towns of White Rocks and Neola were threatened by a 1500-acre wildfire.
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August 27
A car crashed into a gas meter at a Grand Rapids, MI car wash, causing a terrible explosion which was felt blocks away.
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August 26
Twenty-one train cars carrying corn derailed in Essex, MT.
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August 26
The entire town of Manton, CA was evacuated because of a 2300-acre wildfire. Thirty structures were burned.
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August 25
An explosion at a North Pekin, IL gas company injured 3 men and caused the evacuation of local residences and businesses.
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August 25
Almost half a million Californians lost power briefly. Officials said it was an isolated incident.
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August 24
A train derailment in Des Moines, Iowa stopped commuter traffic.
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August 24
A train derailment in Chicago caused delays for commuter trains.
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August 23
A rare 3.8 earthquake hit near Hot Springs, NC. The quake shook houses and caused a landslide on a nearby highway along with scattered power outages. It was felt as far away as Atlanta and Shelby, NC.
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August 23
A train derailment in New York forced cancellation of Amtrak passenger trains between NY and Boston for the rest of the week.
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August 22
A grain elevator in Lanesboro, Iowa exploded. The blast was felt several miles away. Fortunately, no one was injured.
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August 21
An explosion destroyed a vacant house in Sutersville, PA. Nearby houses were damaged from flying debris.
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August 19
A train derailed in Reno Co., KS when 2 parked tanker cars, one carrying phosphoric acid, were struck by a moving train switched to the wrong track.
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August 19
An explosion occurred at an Edmonton, Canada condo under construction, forcing the evacuation of nearby homes and businesses as the fire continued to grow.
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August 19
An natural gas pipeline exploded south of Eunice, NM, exactly 5 years after a previous such explosion in the area. The blast created a hole 200' long, 10' wide and 8' deep. There were no injuries.
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August 19
An electrical transformer exploded beneath a San Francisco, CA street, severely burning a passeby and leading to the evacuation of thousands of workers, which shut down businesses for the day. Officials later blamed a water leak.
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August 18
An explosion at a fireworks factory in Crestline, KS killed two people and injured 3 others. The explosion was felt far away, shaking homes and almost throwing one resident out of her chair.
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August 18
A 1200-acre wildfire in Athena, WA threatened 110 houses.
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August 17
A tractor-trailer hauling gas crashed on I-25 near Santa Fe, NM, sending flames 100' skyward. The explosion was "felt for quite a distance." The interstate was closed in both directions.
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August 16
The 3rd train derailment occurred in Pritchett, Texas since May. Twenty cars derailed this time but there were no hazardous materials involved.
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August 16
A train derailment occurred west of Gillete, WY when 11 cars ran off the track.
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August 16
The Blackerby fire in northern Idaho still threatened 50 homes and evacuation orders for local residents were still in effect.
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August 15
An explosion occurred at an apartment/office building in East Hampton, CT which displaced all of the tenants. Officials said the explosion, which almost destroyed the building, was "suspicious." The building has been the site of numerous crimes in the past.
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August 15
A train derailed in Maryville, TN. There were no hazardous materials involved. Thirty-one cars derailed and almost killed two bystanders.
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August 15
Hundreds of thousands of homes were without power in New England after a fierce line of thunderstorms moved through the region. The mayor of Stamford, CT said the damage was the worst since an ice storm in 1973.
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August 15
Fifty-two train cars derailed in Blount county, TN.
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August 15
An apartment house in Pittsburgh, PA exploded, leaving over 2 dozen people homeless.
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August 14
A 3.0 earthquake shook northeastern AR.
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August 12
A natural gas boiler exploded in a Thornton, CO apartment complex, damaging the complex such that 61 residents were left homeless for at least one week to up to a month.
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August 12
A pipe bomb exploded in the middle of a quiet neighborhood street in Canonsburg, PA, damaging nearby cars and houses.
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August 12
A brief power outage in Green, Ohio left thousands without power and caused the local airport to experience unusual behavior from their electronic equipment. A bridge loading a jet moved up instead of down and punctured a hole in a Boeing 717, stranding 101 passengers, while a baggage conveyer belt went into reverse.
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August 12
A 48,000-acre wildfire in Pomeroy, WA destroyed more than 100 homes.
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August 12
A rare tornado in Wright, WY killed 2 people and destroyed almost 100 houses.
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August 11
Ten train cars derailed in the Mexican state of Sonora, spilling 2 carloads (24,000 gallons) of sulfuric acid into the Santa Cruz River. Since the river runs north into Nogales, AZ, officials shut off wells and dammed the river to protect water supplies. Residents were advised not to drink water from private wells, which left some without water.
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August 10
BP's Texas City, Texas plant leaked some chemicals into the atmosphere, prompting officials to issue a "shelter-in-place" order for residents to stay indoors.
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August 10
An explosion occurred at BP's Chocolate Bayou petrochemical plant in Louisiana. Officials recommended that local resident stay indoors until the fire was extinguished. It was more than 2 days before the fire was put out.
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August 10
A truck hauling 35,500 lbs. of explosives overturned in Salt Lake City, Utah and blew a 30'-deep crater in Hwy. 6. At least 17 people were injured.
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August 10
A 4.9 earthquake struck area around the NM/CO border. There were no reports of damage.
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August 9
An unusually powerful lightning strike in Mesa, AZ damaged 13 homes.
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August 9
Eleven train cars derailed in Benton Harbor, MI, spilling rocks and gravel.
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August 9
A construction worker accidentally cut an oil pipeline, triggering a massive explosion that caught a nearby vacant house on fire, causing the adjacent highway to be closed and a local family to evacuate. The worker was seriously injured.
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August 9
A hazardous waste plant exploded in Detroit, MI, sending a mushroom cloud 500' skyward. A 1-mile radius was evacuated, which affected about 100 homes. Residents returned home on 8/11 and were warned not to touch any of the ash which had been deposited in the area.
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August 9
A house in Wichita, KS was destroyed an explosion. Authorities thought it was from a propane gas leak.
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August 9
Almost 1400 firefighters fought a 37,000-acre wildfire in Pomeroy, WA that had destroyed over 100 homes.
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August 9
About 13,000 customers lost power after a brief but severe storm in the area of Shreveport, LA.
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August 8
Over 100 residents were evacuated in Houghton, MI when a wildfire burned more than 700 acres.
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August 8
A 35,000-acre wildfire burned more than 100 homes and cabins south of Pomeroy, WA. The fire was only 150 acres in size on 8/6.
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August 5
An explosion at a Philadephia, PA hospital led to the evacuation of 3 patients. A "suspicious device" was also found on the same floor, but did not detonate.
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August 5
A train carrying molten sulfur derailed in Denver, CO. Three of the four locomotives went off the track but no cars derailed and none of their cargo was spilled.
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August 5
A train derailed in Portland, OR and spilled about 30 gallons of denatured alcohol, a flammable liquid.
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August 5
An Amtrak train struck a dump truck on the track, derailing the front part of the train and injuring 20 people.
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August 4
A dozen train cars derailed in Long Beach, CA.
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August 3
A train derailment in Edmonton, Canada spilled oil into a lake and caused a 5 km oil slick. The cars were carrying bunker fuel oil, used in making asphalt, and the accident is an unprecedented disaster. One tanker was carrying caustic soda (sodium hydroxide) which raised the pH and killed all the fish. Experts said it could take years for the waterway to recover from the damage.
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August 3
More than 30 train cars carrying cement mix derailed near Thrall, TX.
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August 2
An Amtrak struck a dump truck in Raleigh, NC and killed the 2 passengers in the truck.
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August 1
A train derailed in Jefferson county, MO, spilling some new vehicles and knocking down a power pole. About 2000 customers lost power.
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August 1
Almost 5000 people in Waikoloa, HW were evacuated when a 25,000 wildfire threatened their homes and cut off a town.
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August 1
Twenty train cars derailed in Riverside, PA. No hazardous materials were involved.
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July 31
A 3.3 earthquake struck at Mt. St. Helens, which is becoming active again. Scientists say it could erupt at any time.
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July 31
Nineteen train cars, most of them empty, derailed east of Pierre, and started a small wildfire. The cause was thought to be a sun kink, when the heat from the sun causes the rails to expand differently and kink.
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July 30
The 4,200-sq. ft. Charlotte, NC home of the Chicago White Sox conditioning coach was destroyed in an explosion that shook buildings miles away. The cause was a propane gas leak. Fortunately, no one was at home in the recently-completed house.
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July 28
The two small communities of Tecopa and Shoshone went without power and telephone service for 2 days after a major thunderstorm passed through. This meant that most people were without water also, since most get their water from wells. Then a lightning strike on 8/5 left them without power again for 16 hours.
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July 28
A storage building in a new Bristol, TN subdivision exploded when several sticks of dynamite stored there went off. The ensuing fire spread to adjacent homes. The owner was arrested and several residences were evacuated for fear of further explosions. One resident observed, "It's scary. You don't know what people are doing right next to you in their homes."
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July 28
A series of explosions at a Ft. Worth, TX chemical plant sent up a smoke plume that could be seen 30 miles away and shook nearby buildings. The fire burned around storage tanks of methanol, sulfuric and hydrochloric acid, ethanol and other hazardous chemicals. Some local workers were sent home, since some people were feeling the effects of the chemicals which could be smelled in the air.
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July 28
An explosion at the BP refinery in Texas City, TXs shook houses 2 miles away. This was the second explosion this year. The previous explosion killed 15 people. A shelter-in-place order was issued after winds changed and began to blow smoke towards the city. The accident was caused by a pipeline failure, because pipe of the wrong alloy was installed. These accidents have impacted what would have been a record profit for BP. There are now calls to shut down the refinery to address safety issues, which would bring upward pressure on gas prices since refineries are already running at near full capacity. The explosion sent crude prices to $61/barrel.
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July 28
Five people were injured and 900 customers lost power from an underground sewer blast in West New York, NY.
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July 28
Seven people received minor injuries from a gas explosion in DuPont's Sabine River Works Plant in Texas.
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July 27
A severe storm in Orange and Rockland counties, NY knocked down trees and power lines, leaving a maximum of 6,900 customers without power. The local water company had to request residents to conserve water because the system was unable to replenish itself from the power outage.
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July 27
A train derailment occurred in Davidson county, NC where 7 cars derailed and 2 fell into High Rock Lake, which supplies water to 3 counties. An evacuation was prepared but was called off because the cars were only carrying beads and limestone.
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July 27
An explosion and subsequent fire destroyed a Sacramento, CA medical office building.
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July 27
Mexico's 12,533'-tall Volcano of Fire sent a spectacular eruption of glowing rock, ash and steam almost 9,000' into the atmosphere, raining ash down on local towns but there were no reports of major damage.
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July 27
Two Able Energy officials and a former employee were sentenced for causing the March 14, 2003 propane explosion at the Able Energy site in Newton, NJ which led to the evacuation of nearly 1,000 people from their homes for a week while the fire burned out. Dozens of local homes were damaged and local businesses were closed.
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July 26
More than 250 people were evacuated in Eunice, LA after 30 lbs of chlorine gas was released from the city's waste water treatment plant. The release was caused by a malfunction of a tank valve.
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July 26
A train derailment in Abilene, TX caused the evacuation of downtown residents and businesses because some of the cargo was flammable.
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July 26
A transformer in Rock Hill, SC went down and left 6,000 customers without power on the hottest day of the year.
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July 25
The second major power outage in a month struck Greensboro, NC, when more than 4,000 customers lost power and traffic was snarled. The cause was unknown.
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July 25
A small 200-acre wildfire threatened 2-300 homes in Madera, CA, where residents were asked to evacuate.
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July 25
A train hauling corn derailed in Conrad, MT.
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July 25
Two chlorine train cars derailed in Forrest county, MS. but there were no leaks.
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July 25
A 5.6 earthquake struck Dillon, MT. The quake was felt as far away as Denver, Seattle and Calgary. Damage was minimal. It was the first major earthquake to hit the state in years.
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July 24
Various areas were evacuated in the Black Hills National Forest in WY from 5 different forest fires burning more than 2,000 acres totaled.
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July 23
A 17,000-acre wildfire threatened Veyo, Utah and officials stood by ready to issue an evacuation order.
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July 22
Sixteen train cars derailed near Randolph, WI. The carge was not hazardous.
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July 22
A 38,000-acre wildfire caused the evacuation of the town of Sunflower, AZ. A 150 homes were evacuated previously in Punkin Center.
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July 22
A widespread power outage caused by extreme heat knocked out the power to 9,000 residents in Charlotte, NC.
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July 22
A house in Washington Township, NJ exploded from a propane leak. All the residents safely escaped.
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July 22
The town of Gunlock, Utah was surrounded by fire and residents were ordered to evacuate. This was the 2nd evacuation in 3 weeks.
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July 21
A train hauling corn derailed in Bussey, Iowa.
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July 21
A power line fell in New Castle, PA and left about 25,000 customers without power.
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July 21
A Brundidge, AL house was destroyed by an explosion. The elderly woman resident was blown out into the yard and was taken to the hospital in critical condition.
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July 20
A house in Plattsburgh, NY exploded, sending one man to the hospital with serious burns.
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July 20
Fifty homes in Kiowa, CO were hastily evacuated when a 200-acre wildfire rapidly expanded.
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July 20
Hurricane Emily, a category 3 storm, went ashore at San Fernando, Mexico. The area around South Padre Island, TX suffered only minor damage. More than 28,000 customers lost power.
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July 20
A train hauling automobiles derailed in San Bernardino, CA.
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July 20
A tank exploded at a Dallesport, WA propane facility, starting a brush fire that forced the closure of US 197. There were 5 or 6 additional 30,000 gallon tanks that were threatened by the explosion.
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July 19
More than 60,000 residents in northwest IN were told to boil their water for 24 hours after a power outage impaired the ability of several water treatment facilities to purify water.
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July 19
A transformer exploded in Stamford, CT, shooting flames 30' skyward, cutting off power and causing the evacuation of several hundred people.
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July 19
An abandoned house exploded in a Detroit, MI neighborhood, shaking nearby houses.
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July 18
An explosion at a smelting building in East Hanover Township, NJ sent 6 workers to the hospital. The explosion was caused when melted metal hit cool water.
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July 18
Several homes were evacuated in Seal Beach, CA when a man was playing with an explosive device in his home and accidentally detonated it.
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July 17
One hundred residents were evacuated along the San Pedro River, AZ when a 600-acre fire threatened their homes.
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July 17
Over 8,000 customers in Santa Clarita Valley, CA lost power in the early afternoon, and did not regain power until the next morning. The outage was caused by a faulty cable during peak demand.
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July 16
Ten thousand Utah customers lost power when scattered wildfires burned down powerlines.
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July 16
An iron ore train derailed in Isabella, MI, cutting off some phone service.
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July 16
Two train derailments occurred on the same track in ND. One destroyed 1,000' of track.
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July 15
A train derailment in Medina county, Texas, causing some minor injuries.
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July 14
Twenty houses in Arapahoe county, CO were evacuated when a convicted killer doused himself with gasoline and threatened to blow up himself and his girlfriend by igniting his pickup loaded with containers full of gas.
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July 14
Scientists cannot explain a 400 degree hotspot found in the Los Padres National Forest in Santa Barbara, CA. The spot was actually found last summer when it started a forest fire. The highest temperature was actually 584 degrees, 11' underground. The normal temperature of volcanic vents is around 200 degrees. The site may be the result of the formation of a new volcano, such as Mount Shasta, Mount Hood and Mount Rainier.
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July 14
A wildfire south of Tucson, AZ grew to 10,000 acres and threatened the Fred Lawrence Whipple Observatory, with over $100 million worth of equipment. About 30 summer homes were evacuated.
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July 14
A wildfire on an Indian reservation in Omak, WA reached over 10,000 acres in size and burned around a couple of homes that were protected by firefighters.
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July 14
An explosion at a subdivision construction site in Sparks, NV threw debris damaging 9 nearby houses.
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July 13
A 100-acre wildfire in Rancho Palos Verdes, CA threatened as many as 300 homes and caused the evacuation of residents before it was controlled.
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July 13
A train car derailed in Fort Payne, AL, the second derailment at this location in 2 months.
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July 13
A minor 3.1 earthquake hit near Bakersfield, CA.
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July 13
An urban wildfire in Tucson, AZ caused 20 families to evacuate. The fire was later controlled.
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July 12
One person was killed and Route 7 was closed in Ridgefield, CT when a gasoline truck overturned and exploded, damaging a highway bridge.
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July 11
A pipe bomb placed under a car in Barre, VT apartment complex blew up and incinerated six cars, and rattled the nerves of apartment residents.
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July 11
A school mission house in Mission, Texas was destroyed by an explosion.
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July 10
A home in Rio Rancho, NM exploded after a domestic dispute. Neighbors reported a strong odor of natural gas.
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July 10
Hurricane Dennis made landfall at Santa Rosa Island, FL with 120 mph winds. Half a million had evacuated, and the same number were without power the day after from MS to FL. The storm was the earliest category 4 hurricane on record. Property losses could be as high as $5 billion.
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June 28-July 10
The largest wildfire in the nation, in southern NV was officially considered contained. The scattered fire burned about half of a 240 square mile-area, and cost more than $4.7 million to fight.
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July 6-10
The Mason wildfire in Beulah, CO tripled in size in one day, eventually to 11,000 acres, threatening 750 homes and forcing the hasty evacuation of 5,000 people.
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July 10
A Detroit, MI woman's house was destroyed by an explosion which shook the whole block, damaged nearby houses and scattered debris across the neighborhood.
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July 10
Two freight trains collided near Anding, MS, killing one person. One car caught fire from leaking vegetable oil.
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July 9
An unexplained explosion in a Lacrosse, WI duplex caused the evacuation of its residents.
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July 9
Sixty-five homes were hastily evacuated in Piedmont, SD from a wildfire.
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July 7
A Los Altos, CA house was destroyed by a massive explosion, in which miraculously survived a man and his two children.
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July 6
A huge power outage left 9,000 Albuquerque residents without power from an unknown cause.
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July 6
A train derailment west of Waldwick, NJ blocked commuter train traffic.
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July 6
A train derailment in Orem, Utah spilled dry wall, pushed 3 engines off the track and sparked a small brush fire.
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July 6
Scattered wildfires broke out in southern CA. The largest, near Palmdale, burned 1200 acres and led to the evacuation of 1200 from summer camps in the San Bernardino National Forest. Some homes were threatened before firefighters contained them. Residents near Palomar Mountain were evacuated for a brief time.
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July 6
The Cave Creek fire in AZ was finally under control. A total of 245,310 acres were burned.
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July 5
A minor train derailment snarled traffic in San Antonio, Texas.
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July 5
Tropical storm Cindy hit Louisiana and left more than 300,000 homes and businesses without power. Areas hit by the storm were declared a state of emergency by the MS governor. The coast received 3-4" of rain and a 4-6' storm surge. Twenty-three oil production platforms were evacuated and gas prices reached a record level. This was the earliest hurricane season ever, which is predicted to be worst than last year's, with $20 billion in damage.
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July 5
The 40,000-acre Tweedy Point fire was contained in Utah. There were other scattered wildfires burning around Utah as well that were under control.
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July 5
A train derailment in Benedict, ND spilled barley.
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July 2
A house exploded in Westhampton Beach, MA and was felt at the police station 3/4 mile away. Local residents were evacuated. The cause was a gas leak.
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July 2
The Cave Creek fire in AZ continued to grow and threatened the APS 550 KV powerline, which supplies much of the power delivered to Phoenix. However, much of threat was alleviated by a controlled burnout near Black Canyon City. At this point 214,300 acres have burned at a cost of over $9 million.
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July 1
A train carrying toxic chemicals derailed in Red Level, AL. There were 30,000 gallons of phenol and methanol, which if exploded could blow up the area. Residents were evacuated within a 1/2 mile radius until after cleanup, and the evacuation would have to have been expanded if any cars were punctured.
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July 1
A coal train derailed in Miles City, MT, interfering with train and vehicluar traffic.
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July 1
The largest wildfire in the nation, at more than 1000 sq. miles, continued to burn in southern NV and western Utah. There is currently no threat to major population centers.
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July 1
Some homes in Contra Costa county, CA were threatened by a 1000-acre wildfire.
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July 1
A grain elevator exploded near downtown Toldeo, Ohio. The smoke from the fire forced the closure of the nearby Maumee R. and I-75.
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June 30
A steel beam shifted in a condo in Cook county, IL causing the structure to shake and cracking walls. Over 50 residents were evacuated. Some of them thought the shaking was from an earthquake.
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June 30
Over 17,000 customers lost power in Amherst and Pendleton, NY when a large transmission line went down.
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June 29
A burglar broke a gas line in a Columbus, Ohio building, causing an explosion that damaged an adjacent apartment building and forced the evacuation of about 20 homes.
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June 28
A suicidal man poured gas upon himself in his Beaverton, OR apartment and set himself on fire. The resulting explosion damaged several nearby apartments and displaced more than a dozen people.
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June 28
A house blew up in a Pontiac, MI neighborhood, damaging adjacent houses. A man miraculously survived the accident.
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June 27
A 2.8 earthquake hit Carbondale, IL. There was no damage or injuries.
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June 27
A 12,000-acre wildfire New Harmony, Utah threatened a housing development, leading to the evacuation of almost 1,000 people. Officials also finally contained a 68,264-acre fire nearby.
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June 27
An explosion at a Dearborn, MI substation left about 10,000 people without power overnight.
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June 26
A 4.8 earthquake hit Truckee, CA. A man hit a falling boulder with his car and was fortunate to survive.
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June 25
A minor 2.7 earthquake hit Portland, OR. Many people were asleep and did not feel it.
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June 25
Two hundred Amtrak passengers were stranded in Glenwood Springs, CO when a coal train derailed and blocked the tracks.
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June 24
A train derailment in a remote area near the Neches River in TX cause $1 million in damage. There was an evacuation of a half-mile radius which was later rescinded.
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June 24
A 20-car train derailment in Walnut Ridge, AR spilled some acid.
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June 24
A transformer fire in a Chicago tunnel led to a power outage for 51,000 customers, during the hottest day in 3 years.
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June 24
A 15-yr. old girl, Samantha Paulette Alvarez, died on the scene when an explosion rocked her home 21 miles north of Liberal, KS.
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June 21-24
Most of the residents of 250 evacuated homes north of Phoenix, AZ returned home after a wildfire burned 46,000 acres. Camp Creek saw the worst of the fire, where 12 homes were destroyed. In Nevada 39,500 acres burned from lightening strikes.
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June 24
A wildfire this week burned 3 thousand acres and destroyed 6 homes in Morongo Valley, CA. At its worse 700 homes were threatened, and hundreds of people were evacuated. The fire started at a home there, but the cause is not known. Wildfires burned a total of 25,000 acres in the area since 6/22, mostly in the Mojave National Preserve.
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June 24
An St. Louis, MO industrial plant fire burst into a spectacular series of explosions, forcing people up to a mile away to be evacuated. Interstate 64 was also closed. The explosions forced windows inward on homes 5 blocks away. Debris fell like missiles as far as 1/3 mile away, where the heat was also felt.
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June 24
A dozen rail cars carrying a flammable substance derailed in Evadale, TX, prompting local residents to evacuate.
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June 23
A locomotive derailed in Auburn, NY. A train previously derailed at this location on 7/8/04. The train was returned to the tracks without incident.
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June 21
Five train cars derailed near Kremmling, CO. Two of the cars were carrying soda ash.
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June 21
An explosion at an oil recycling facility in Arcade, GA left one worker dead and caused the evacuation of an adjacent neighborhood. The fire caused over $500,000 in damage.
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June 20
A Fridley, MN townhome exploded, shaking adjacent homes and causing the residents to evacuate.
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June 20
A 3.9 earthquake, the second in 10 hours centered in Hickman County, KY, was also felt in IL, MO, TN and AR. A new study was just released that confirms the tension on the New Madrid fault is increasing. There is now a 7-10% chance of another earthquake similar to the 1811 earthquake (8.1) that caused damage as far away as SC and Washington D.C. The USGS says there is a 90% of a 6-7 earthquake occurring in the area in the next 50 years.
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June 20
Three train cars derailed in Mason City, Iowa. There were no injuries.
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June 19
A 2.7 earthquake, centered near Clinton, KY, was felt in southern IL and KY.
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June 19
A moderate 5.0 earthquake off the northern CA coast. It was the fifth moderate to severe earthquake in just over one week.
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June 19
The parents of 5 children were killed when their house exploded in Albuquerque, NM.
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June 18
Thousands had to evcauate in Alberta, Canada following extensive periods of heavy rains. Damage eventually proved to be in excess of $200 million.
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June 17
Four train cars derailed in Houston, TX and leaked sodium hydroxide, which is not dangerous to the air.
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June 17
A minor train derailment in Cleveland, OH delayed commuters.
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June 17
A tanker car carrying gas derailed, along with 4 other cars, in Roseburg, OR. There were no leaks.
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June 17
A train derailment in Enid, OK spilled automobiles, plastic pellets and coke.
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June 17
A mild 3.5 earthquake hit Sonoma Co., CA.
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June 16
A Hamden, CT man woke up in the night to use the bathroom, and when he turned on the light it ignited a gas leak and blew up the house.
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June 16
A 6.6 earthquake struck offshore of northern CA.
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June 15
A massive power outage struck the Houston area, leaving almost 100,000 without power.
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June 14
A runaway train car injured 6 people, crashing through two intersections as it traveled 4 miles through Union Township, Ohio and finally derailed. Fortunately the car was carrying lumber and not hazardous materials.
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June 14
A power outage struck Lake Placid, NY, shutting down the town for most of the day.
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June 14
A major 7.2 earthquake struck 80 miles southwest of Crescent City, CA. A tsunami warning was issued from Mexico to Vancouver Island, BC and areas along the coast were evacuated. Emergency preparedness officials said later that the incident showed that the West Coast is ill prepared for a serious tsunami.
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June 14
A 6.9 earthquake struck the Aleutian Islands of AK. No tsunami was expected.
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June 13
A contractor cut a gas line in a Overland Park, KS neighborhood, causing the evacuation of several dozen residents.
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June 13
A mudslide swept away part of the Adirondack Highway into Lake Placid, NY. The area received 6" of rain and many local roads were washed out.
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June 13
A manhole cover exploded in Brookline, MA and caused a power outage.
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June 12
A 5.6 earthquake struck near Palm Springs, CA. It was felt from LA to Arizona, down to San Diego. There were no reports of significant damage.
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June 12
The remnants of tropical storm Arlene spawned tornados and flooding in KY and IN.
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June 12
A car bomb went off in an Orlando, FL apartment complex, leading to the evacuation of 8 apartments.
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June 11
A tornado damaged at least 25 residences in Hammond, WI. Winds were up to 157 mph and damage was at least $3.6 million. Repairs were delayed for fear of gas leaks.
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June 10
A tractor trailer hauling more than a ton of explosives overturned in San Antonio, TX, forcing the closure of two interstates and the evacuation of local residents.
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June 9
A power outage struck the Florida panhandle, leaving 18,000 customers without power, when a serious construction accident injured 3 workers when a scaffold rolled into a power line.
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June 9
A 4.9 earthquake hit San Bernardino County, CA.
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June 8
Severe storms in the upper midwest caused flooding and forced about 30 people from their houses. Over 200,000 people in Minneapolis lost power.
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June 8
A huge mudslide swept 20-ton boulders onto a Galax, VA roadway.
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June 8
A train derailment in West Haven, Utah was caused by teenagers playing with the track switches. Two empty tanker cars were all that derailed.
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June 8
A brush fire west of Wittman, AZ led to the evacuation of about 40 people.
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June 8
About 8,000 customers lost power on Staten Island, NY and about 5400 were without electricity for over 24 hours.
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June 8
The second home explosion in CO in two days occurred in Weld County when a home blew up from a propane leak. No one was hurt in the incident.
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June 8
A home in Baltimore, MD was destroyed by an explosion.
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June 8
An explosion and fire left one person dead at the Conair chemical plant in Rantoul, IL. The fire was caused by alcohol and there were at least six explosions after the fire started.
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June 7
A chlorine dioxide leak at a paper plant in Escanaba, MI led to the evacuation of local residents.
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June 7
Sixteen cars derailed in Princeton, LA near the Calumet refinery. There was only minor damage.
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June 7
An propane explosion partially destroyed a stone home in Bailey, CO and injured 3 people. The house was condemned as a result.
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June 6
A grain silo in Sebree, KY was destroyed by an explosion. No one was killed in the accident.
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June 6
A minor landslide in San Juan Capistrao, CA led to a voluntary evacuation by residents.
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June 4-6
A storm which spawned at least 30 tornados passed through the midwest and into the eastern U.S. Over 19,000 Chicago residents and thousands in PA were left without power. Wind gusts in Washington, D.C. were near hurricane-force. The number of tornados this year is far below normal.
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June 3
A pipeline exploded in Rusk County, TX setting nearby woods on fire and causing the evacuation of 5 homes. The explosion rattled houses in the area.
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June 3
A chemical storage facility exploded in Staten Island, NY, killing one person.
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June 2
An apartment explosion from a gas leak in Bountiful, Utah displaced 30 people from the apartment building.
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June 2
Two train cars carrying automobiles derailed in Montclair, CA.
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June 2
A 4.0 earthquake struck northwestern TN near Dyersburg.
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June 1
A trucking repair company exploded from a natural gas line in Rochester, NY, causing the evacuation of nearby buildings.
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June 1
A gas well exploded near Lake Houston, TX as flames shot 100-300' into the air, forcing the evacuation of at least 15 families. Families within a mile radius were ordered to stay inside.
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June 1
A meth lab exploded in a St. Louis, MO house, blowing pieces of the garage door across the street and severely burning two men.
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June 1
A landslide suddenly struck Laguna Beach, CA, forcing residents to flee their homes and run for their lives, some in their bed clothes. The landslide destroyed 17 homes, damaged 11 more and caused 1,000 people to evacuate from more than 500 homes. Some of the evacuees were forced to stay with neighbors. The slide was almost certainly due to heavy winter rains.
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June 1
A mudslide in Troutdale, OR shut down the historic Columbia River Highway and damaged one home.
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May 31
A vacuum train derailed in New York, halting train traffic on the F and G line and wreaking havoc on commuters' schedules.
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May 30
A train derailment in downtown Baton Rouge, LA could have been much worse. Eight train cars derailed, 4 of which were carrying propylene oxide but none leaked. Two nearby museums and a bowling alley were evacuated.
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May 30
Several train cars carrying scrap paper and sand derailed in San Antonio, TX. In the past year there have been 7 major train derailments in San Antonio and Bexar county which killed 5 people.
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May 30
An explosion leveled a 200-yr. old farmhouse in Campton, NH. External propane tanks were suspected as the cause. The blast shook local houses and was heard a mile away.
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May 29
Houston, TX was struck by a storm that spawned a tornado and left numerous people homeless. About 130,000 customers lost power.
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May 28
A seawall in Brooklyn, NY collapsed, which was also part of a bridge span, forcing its closure.
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May 27
A duplex in Tuscon, AZ exploded when a gas leak ignited, severely burning the occupant. The cause was still under investigation but the gas company may have been at fault. The man later sued alleging that the gas company improperly installed and maintained the gas line and a 2-3" crack developed.
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May 27
An explosion at a York, PA electrical substation cut off power to as many as 10,000 customers. The cause of the blast was unknown.
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May 27
Montana's governor declared an emergency in Carbon County after 5 mudslides last week took out US 212, the route between Red Lodge and Yellowstone. The area has not experienced a mudslide in 50 years.
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May 26
A gas line ruptured and exploded in Santa Cruz, CA while a crew was working on it. The blast led to the evacuation of all businesses and homes within a half-mile radius.
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May 26
An underground electrical explosion blew out manhole covers in Washington, D.C. and caused the evacuation of the World Bank and area businesses. Flames shot 50' into the air. Authorities shut down a four-block area, snarling traffic.
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May 25
Two different train derailments occurred in Los Angeles. One occurred in Chinatown when two empty cars derailed and blocked Metrolink trains. The second involved one freight car that leaked a small quantity of acetone.
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May 23-25
A cold front moved from the midwest through the eastern US, causing scattered tornadoes, power outages and damaged houses in some areas.
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May 23
A house exploded in a La Crosse, WI neighborhood, destroying one side of the house and forcing the evacuation of local residents.
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May 23
An explosion at in a Chicago apartment complex caused a partial building collapse and injured 7 residents.
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May 22
Ten train cars derailed near Bourbon, IN. They were all empty grain cars and nothing was spilled.
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May 22
A mudslide in a Mercer Island, WA neighborhood crossed a road and blocked access to a dozen homes. The slide was attributed to a leaking waterline to one of the homes, in addition to recent rain.
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May 20
A mudslide in Stockton, UT blocked their water plant's intake, forcing residents to conserve water until the situation can be rectified.
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May 20
An explosion outside of a lounge in Jacksonville, NC occurred when a welder ignited fumes from an old underground gas tank, left in the ground when the site was used as a gas station. The blast threw asphalt in a 200-yard radius, killing one man and injuring at least two people.
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May 19
A Long Island, NY neighborhood was rocked with its second house explosion in two days when a vacant house undergoing renovation blew up.
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May 19
Three thousand Ohio Edison customers lost power when a freak accident on I-71 pulled down power lines across the interstate, forcing its closure.
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May 18
An oil well exploded in Whittier, CA neighborhood, injuring two workers and starting a brush fire that threatened local houses. Six homes were evacuated. The blaze required at least 50 firefighters to contain.
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May 18
A home in Waldwick, NJ was destroyed by an explosion when a pest control worker punctured a gas line. Meanwhile, 700 plant workers were evacuated from a Saddle Brook, NJ plant when the roof partially collapsed.
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May 18
A severe storm moved through northern CA and dumped over an inch of rain. There were scattered power outages and one mudslide was reported. This spring has been unusually wet and has hurt agriculture in the area.
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May 18
The rear 10 cars of a train derailed in Kansas City, MO.
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May 17
An American kestrel falcon caused an hour-long power outage, the longest from a bird in Utah Power's history, when it knocked out the power to 28,000 customers.
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May 16
A severe storm left up to 18,000 people without power in Salt Lake City. The storm damaged houses and the wind pushed over tractor trailers on the interstates, forcing their closure.
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May 16
A train derailed in Port Arthur, TX, spilling soda ash. The local road was closed but no evacuations were necessary.
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May 15
A train derailed in Orlando, FL. No injuries were reported but nearby parked cars were damaged.
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May 14-15
Two separate train derailments near Bill, WY disrupted coal train traffic. Up to 100 trains a day ship coal there from the Powder River Basin.
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May 14
Seventy-five year old Richard McKnight was forced to stay in his car for 5 days when he accidentally drove off the road into a ravine on his way to the grocery store in Kingston, WA. McKnight was only 30' off 288th St., but the area was thickly wooded and he was hidden from the view of passing drivers. He was unable to climb out and was fortunately eventually found by a surveyor. According to the Weather Channel, McKnight said that he would henceforth always carry food and water in his car, along with a cell phone.
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May 14
A train derailed in Jamestown, ND, spilling bentonite clay. It will take 3 weeks to clean up the area.
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May 14
A train derailed near Pritchett, TX in the same location one derailed on May 11. There were no injuries or spills.
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May 13
A pipeline exploded and flames leapt hundreds of feet into the air, forcing the evacuation of residents within a mile in Harrison County, TX. The blast led to a second fire at the local power plant. The next day the evacuation was still in effect. About 160' of 36" pipe was damaged.
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May 13
A train derailed at a major intersection in Pueblo, CO, forcing its closure and requiring the replacement of 400' of track. Only wheat was spilled.
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May 13
A remote-controlled locomotive derailed in a Houston, TX Union Pacific rail yard. Eleven cars derailed and 30 employees were evacuated. The cars were partially filled with chemicals but none leaked.
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May 12
Mudslides in Utah in damaged apartment buildings, forcing families to move. The mudslides followed recent record rains.
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May 12
A retaining wall on the Henry Hudson Parkway in upper Manhattan, NY collapsed and brought down tons of earth onto parked cars.
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May 12
Five train cars derailed during a coupling manuever in South Toledo, Ohio, spilling soybeans.
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May 12
High winds blew empty railroad cars off the tracks on two separate trains near Central City, NE.
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May 12
A train derailment in Pekin, IN led to the evacuation of about 200 residents because hazardous materials were being transported. Fortunately none leaked. One of the cars was carrying phosphorus pentasulfide, a dangerous chemical than can form hydrogen sulfide gas when combined with moisture in the air.
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May 11
A trailer of hot asphalt exploded in Santa Barbara, CA, throwing hot asphalt a 100 yards. Had the blast occurred later in the morning, there could have been many commuter fatalities.
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May 11
A train derailed in Pritchett, TX when 21 cars left the tracks. The wreck requires the replacement of 1500' of rail. A small bridge was damaged and train traffic had to be rerouted.
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May 10
Crude oil and gas prices rose after a ConocoPhillips refinery in Belle Chasse, Louisiana went down due to power failure. Refineries operated at 92.5% capacity last week, and one analyst said, "We are just a refinery outage away from a major rise in prices."
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May 10
An explosion occurred at a substation in Manchester, NH and knocked power out to about 4500 customers.
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May 10
An explosion destroyed a house in a Madisonville, KY neighborhood and damaged two adjacent houses.
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May 9
A fire in a Westerly, RI mill led to the evacuation of hundreds of local residents because of concerns about burning chemicals, some of which cannot be mixed with water from firefighting efforts. A 5,000 gallon tank of hydrogen peroxide was later safely drained, which would have been a disaster if it had exploded.
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May 8
A 30' section of road collapsed in Deadwood, SD after 3" of rain fell over the weekend.
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May 8
A meth lab blew up in a Cleveland, TN house and burned a man.
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May 6
An explosion in an Ironton, WV neighborhood led to the arrest of a man on arson charges and caused the evacuation of local residents.
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May 5
A freight train derailed in Chicago, IL, blocking commuter traffic.
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May 5
A train derailed in Bellows Falls, VT, blocking traffic.
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May 5
Twenty-five train cars carrying soybeans derailed in Casselton, ND. A railroad worker was injured.
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May 5
A wall suddenly collapsed in Brooklyn, NY and seriously injured two men walking down the sidewalk.
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May 5
Two toy grenades were exploded in front of the British embassy in Manhattan.
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May 2
Two trains collided near Fremont, NE dumping coal and spilled 4,000 gallons of diesel fuel.
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May 2
A brick wall collapsed onto a grocery store in Brooklyn, NY, killing one person and injuring six.
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May 1
A 4.1 earthquake occurred in AR on the New Madrid fault and was felt in 6 states. This was the third quake in the fault zone this year. Scientists say it is just a matter of time before another giant earthquake hits the area, like the one in 1811, which rocked the region for 2 months. Seismologists estimate that there is a 1 in 10 chance that another similar quake will hit in the next fifty years. The worst case estimate is that 20,000 people would die and 10,000,000 people would be homeless.
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May 1
A train derailed in Ardmore, GA when a wheel bearing came loose.
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April 28
A house was destroyed in Milwaukee, WI by an explosion, which damaged 3 adjacent homes as well.
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April 28
Three freight train locomotives derailed in Seattle, WA.
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April 28
A Detroit neighborhood was left without power after two men chopped down a tree, which fell on a powerline. The men then sped off in a van.
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April 27
Several explosions in a West Jordan, Utah home shook the neighborhood and were felt at least 3 blocks away. The house was destroyed by a fire that could be seen miles away.
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April 27
A minor earthquake of 3.3 occurred near Santa Cruz, CA.
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April 26
A fire at the InterRoyal Mill in Plainfield, CT led to the evacuation of about 20 local homes fearing hazardous chemicals. The residents were not allowed to return the next day. Others had to stay indoors with the windows tight.
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April 26
Two sanitation workers in Royalton, IL were injured when materials used to make methamphetamine blew up in their garbage truck.
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April 26
A train derailed in Rowan County, NC, which disrupted passenger and freight service. Twenty-one of 112 cars derailed, but all were empty except one.
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April 25
An explosion from an illegal drug lab in an apartment complex in Sherbrooke, Quebec forced 40 people to evacuate, and possible killed some residents. Bricks from the explosion were thrown into adjacent dwellings, and some local residents were also forced to evacuate.
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April 23
A huge meteor exploded over Manitoba, Canada and shook windows in houses. The explosion was so intense that a fireball was seen in broad daylight.
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April 23
A mudslide in Cedar City, Utah disrupted travel on Hwy 14. This was the first mudslide on the road in 15 years.
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April 22
An explosion at a power substation left half the town of Rutland, VT without power. Had firefighters not responded so quickly the situation could have been much worse.
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April 22
A drunk driver struck two power poles and left parts of Durham, NC without power for as long as 10 hours.
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April 21
A propane business was destroyed in Bolivar, TN when a gas leak initiated the explosion of hundreds of small barbecue tanks, which ignited seven 6,000 gallon storage tanks. About 250 residents within an approximate 1 1/2 mile radius were evacuated. Most were able to return home the next day, however, the fire was still burning on 4/25 and 3 homes were still evacuated.
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April 21
A meth lab explosion in a house severely burned a man in Vancleave, MS. This was the second such explosion in the county in less than a month.
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April 21
A train derailed east of Tyrone, OK, knocking down powerlines and forcing the closure of US Hwy. 54. The train was carrying chemicals and fireworks, among other things. Over 1/2 mile of track will have to be replaced. It appeared that an axle slipped on one of the cars, but the cause is still undetermined.
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April 20
A train derailed in Jessup, MD and caused the delay of several commuter trains.
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April 19
The Jan. 6 train derailment in Graniteville, SC claimed a tenth victim when Leonard Mathis died as a result injuries sustained when he drove into a cloud of chlorine gas released during the derailment.
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April 18
A seal in an inactive mine in Softshell, KY blew out and sent water and mud across highway KY 80. The mudslide forced the closure of the road for an undetermined time.
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April 18
A fire from an explosion of unknown origin swept through a townhouse complex in Evanston, WY, resulting in the death of two firemen.
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April 18
A train derailed outside Latonia, KY. No hazardous materials were being carried.
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April 18
Eleven cars of a train carrying coal derailed in Mt. Pleasant, Iowa. There were no injuries.
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April 17
A freight train derailed along the Appalachian trail in Falls Village, CT. No hazardous materials were spilled.
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April 16
An Amtrak train derailed in Grand Saline, TX, stranding 74 passenges and 11 crew members. Fortunately, no one was hurt.
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April 16
A 5.1 earthquake hit CA about 25 miles SSW of Bakersfield. It could be felt as far away as downtown Los Angeles. There were no injuries.
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April 15
Seven empty rail cars derailed at the Union Pacific rail yard in Livonia, LA.
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April 15
All Acelas trains were taken offline in the northeast when an inspector discovered cracks in the metal brakes on one train. A check of others found 300 cracked brake discs out of 1400, leading to the prompt decision in the interest of safety. This was the 2nd time since December 2000 that cracks in the undercarriage of the trains shut down the entire system of 20 trains. It will probably be months before the brakes are fixed.
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April 14
A train derailed in Solon Springs, MN and caught fire, forcing the evacuation of 5-10 households. Firefighters backed away 1/2 mile, fearing a rail car carrying petroleum would go off like a missle. At least a dozen cars were oveturned.
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April 13
Two freight trains collided near Blairstown, Iowa. The collision tore up 600' of track. The wreck held up commerce from across the country because the location receives a lot of traffic and there are not many detour routes.
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April 12
An explosion in the middle of the night left two families homeless in Homestead, PA. Apparently a gas pocket blew up underground between the two homes, leaving a 5'x5' hole.
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April 12
A train derailed in Galveston, TX. There was a small ethylene glycol leak from one car which was contained.
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April 12
A minor train derailment occurred in Avon, IN when two rail cars lost their axles.
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April 12
Ten rail cars derailed in Marshalltown, Iowa. Nine were carrying fertilizer and one limestone.
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April 9
A widespread power outage from high winds in Aurora, CO left about 9,100 customers without power.
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April 6
A violent storm passed through Mississippi, causing at least 2 dozen tornadoes and leaving countless people homeless. One tornado was rated F3. Particularly hard hit was Rankin County. Over 5,000 homes lost power.
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April 4
A train derailed in San Bernardino, CA and forced the evacuation of hundreds. The train was carrying numerous cars of hazardous materials. The residents were not allowed to return home until 4/7. The accident was later blamed on uneven track, where one track had sunk deeper into the soil.
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April 4
A house exploded in Adams County, CO and killed one man and blew another man out of the house.
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April 3
An Amtrak train derailed in Lyons, NY. No one was injured. The cause of the accident was later found to be a broken rail, however, the line had just been inspected one month prior to the incident. It did not appear that the weather was reponsible.
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April 3
An Amtrak train derailed in the Columbia River Gorge in WA, sending several people to the hospital.
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April 1
Heavy rains flooded an apartment complex in Pensacola, FL, leading to the evacuation of about 100 residents in small boats. The rain caused scattered power outages and closed roads, including I-10. The area received over 10" of rain in 24 hrs. The storm also caused flooding in MS and AL.
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March 31
About 100 homes were projected to be without water due to a mudslide shifting their water tank in Graysville, OH. A boil and conserve water order was issued. This has been an ongoing problem for the residents.
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March 31
A meth lab exploded in a Jackson County, MS trailer park, severely burning three people. A hazmat team had to clean up the site. Two of the victims later died.
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March 30
About 50 tons of rock and mud slid down and blocked a road in Pittsburgh, PA. No one was injured and no homes were destroyed.
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March 30
A fire in an abandoned Warwick, RI mill caused about homes to be evacuated.
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March 30
An explosion at a tape factory in Columbia, SC shook houses a mile away. Local residents were asked to stay indoors and turn off ventilation systems because of the smoke. One worker was killed.
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March 29
Fourteen train cars derailed near Lockhart, TX. Three people were taken to the hospital.
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March 28
A mudslide destroyed part of a home in Bee Branch, AR.
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March 28
A family in District Heights, MD lost their home when it was totally destroyed in a natural gas explosion. They had smelled gas for weeks and told the utility, Washington Gas, who replaced the line. However, the smell continued. Fortunately, no one was at home when it exploded, but they lost all their possession and had only the clothes on their backs. The utility had received 260 calls about gas smells in the neighborhood. Some of the residents had complained for months about the odors. A spokesman for the company said, "We have had an unusual number of leaks in that area. A number are because of faulty couplings." A month before the explosion, the couple complained about their high gas bill, which was $1000. The utility answered that someone in the house must be stealing gas. The fire department speculated that gas migrated underground to the house, but because of the total destruction the real cause will never be known.
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March 24
A power outage of unknown cause left over 10,000 customers without power in Bristol, CT all morning.
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March 23
A 105mm howitzer shell rocked a Utah neighborhood when it was fired into a backyard, damaging a house and leaving a crater. Fragments narrowly missed a 3-yr. old inside. The shell was apparently a stray round fired by the Utah Dept. of Transportation in avalanche control.
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March 23
A mudslide destroyed a house in Scotts Valley, CA. A portion of Hwy. 1 was also closed due to mudslide.
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March 23
A tremendous explosion at the BP refinery in Texas City, TX killed 15 and injured over 100 people. The blast shook houses over 5 miles away. A Muslim fundamentalist group, the "Military Organization of the Middle East," claimed to be responsible for the accident. The FBI, however, said there was no evidence to indicate that the act was terrorism.
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March 22
A mudslide in Aptos, CA destroyed a road and damaged two houses. Eight families were displaced, leaving the neighborhood deserted. The evacuees were allowed to return home on 3/24, but could not reach their homes since the road was gone.
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March 22
An explosion at a chemical plant in Leominster, MA blew the roof off and shook houses a quarter-mile away.
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March 22
A train derailed in Houston. Fortunately only grain was being carried and there were no injuries.
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March 21
An explosion at a Bronx supermarket shook nearby buildings and injuried 5 people. The cause was said to be a gas leak.
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March 21
Two train workers were injured when a mis-thrown switch caused a minor train derailment in Marion, AR.
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March 19
Thirty rail cars derailed and 6 fell into the Mississippi River in Cottage Grove, MN. The cars contained wood products and no hazardous materials.
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March 19
An explosion at a CO mountain retreat injured 12-15 people, some very severely. A propane tank was thought to be the cause. Three children were presumed dead.
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March 18
A failed switch caused a power outage in West Burlington, Iowa. Almost 13,000 customers, including the city water treatment plant, lost power and 76,000 gallons of untreated sewage was released into the Mississippi River.
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March 18
A train derailed in Daleville, AL spilling soybean meal.
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March 17
About 300 people lost power when a dump truck tore down three power poles and lines because the driver forgot to lower his empty truck bed.
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March 16
A power outage in the Rockaway section of Queens, NY left more than 11,000 customers without power.
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March 16
Construction workers in Coraopolis, PA apparently struck a gas line which led to an explosion that destroyed one house and damaged the two on either side. Two teenagers were injured, one critically. Local residents were evacuated.
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March 14
A train derailed near Fort Kent Mills, ME. The minor accident was caused by ice and snow on the tracks. At least 3 derailments have occurred at this location the past year.
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March 13
A fire in an abandoned textile mill in Ninety-Six, SC forced the evacuation of 100 people and resulted in a power outage, as officials turned the power off as a precaution while the fire burned.
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March 13
Approximately 100 people were evacuated from a Miami apartment complex after a security guard fired bullets into his ex-girlfriend's apartment, leading to an 8-hr standoff with police. The seige was ended when police fired tear gas into the apartment, which possibly caused a violent fire and killed the guard.
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March 11
A downtown fire destroyed nine buildings and damaged four more in Fort Scott, KS. The BATF was called in to investigate.
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March 10
Washington's Governor Christine Gregoire declared a state drought emergency, as WA faces the worst drought in 28 years. Measures include preparing for summer wildfires. Oregon, Idaho and Montana are also being affected by the drought.
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March 10
A train derailed near Newark, CA after striking a metal object on the tracks.
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March 9
Geologists released a report recommending that government officials develop plans to deal with a possible supervolcano. The potential for such a catastrophe exists in places such as Yellowstone National Park. When asked about this scenario, FEMA admitted that they had given little thought to the possibility. One of the professors who worked on the report said, "We don't want to be sensationalist about this, but it's going to happen. We just can't say exactly when." Such a disaster would produce blocked highways from the evacuation, hundreds of thousands killed as ash suffocates towns and cities, long- and short-term disruptions in food supply, and plummeting global temperatures.
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March 9
A train derailed in Lake Local Township, Ohio. The cars were carrying petroleum products but nothing was spilled.
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March 9
A train derailed in Tuscaloosa, AL. Nine cars jumped the tracks and 3 overturned, spilling corn and syrup.
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March 9
Six train cars derailed in Mira Loma, CA. The cars were empty but one dangled over the edge of a bridge, forcing the closure of an intersection.
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March 9
A train derailed in Santa Fe Springs, CA as it passed by a switch. A 14-yr. old boy was charged with a felony for pulling the switch and causing the derailment. The train was carrying chlorine, which could affect the surrounding area up to 14 miles if it leaked. Fortunately, no one was hurt. Officials were amazed that a young boy could derail the train. The FBI may investigate further.
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March 8
A freight train derailed in Los Angeles, causing the evacuation of local businesses. Another evacuation was ordered that afternoon because of a possible natural gas leak.
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March 6
A rail car carrying hazardous materials, for which it was not designed, started leaking and forced the evacuation of 6,000 people in Salt Lake City, Utah. There was an alleged lack of information concerning the exact contents of the car.
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March 6
A 30-car train derailment occurred near Meacham, OR. One car contained anhydrous ammonia but did not spill.
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March 6
A train derailed in Orion, IL. The noise from the crash was heard a mile away. No hazardous chemicals were spilled but a bridge was damaged.
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March 5
About 20 of 69 train cars derailed in Bancroft, MI, exploding a propane tank and forcing the evacuation of the town. The force of the blast shook houses about a mile away. There was hazardous material being hauled but fortunately it was not released. There was a 2nd derailment here in the fall, and a third recently. A local resident said, "If this was a 1- time thing, you might think, yes, accidents do happen, but maybe something should be looked at to see if it is a problem in this area." He went on to say that the railroad does a good job of checking on things, but something is wrong. The local fire chief said, "It seems like they are doing a lot of work right here to keep it up, but I just don't understand why this happened. It's the 2nd 1 within 6 months...I talked to the conductors, and they said they were driving along, and all of a sudden, they felt a tug. They have no clue." Another resident said, "I'm still shaking. It was horrible. It was really scary. It was like slow motion. We saw a big fireball."
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March 4
Another rainstorm brought mudslides and flooding to San Diego, CA.
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March 4
Construction workers accidentally cut a gas line, leading to a gas explosion which destroyed part of a pet store in Eatontown, NJ. The 5 people inside were seriously injured.
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March 4
Almost 40 train cars derailed in Brightin, Ontario. Fortunately, no hazardous materials were involved.
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March 1
Three empty rail cars derailed in Greenville, NC.
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March 1
A train derailed in Winchester, OR, spilling some logs and permanently damaging a trestle. The adjacent Hwy 99 was all or partially closed for 2 days.
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February 28
Ten train cars derailed between Medford and Roseburg, OR.
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February 28
An explosion in a meth lab in a motel room in the Seven Mile Ford area of Smythe Co., VA destroyed 8 rooms of the motel and injured one person.
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February 25
Five train cars derailed in Fayetteville, NC.
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February 25
A train derailed in Newark, MD, spilling at least 100 tons of corn.
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February 23
Brunswick, GA had its second train derailment this month when 4 cars jumped the tracks.
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February 23
A train derailed in the Howard St. tunnel in Baltimore. No injuries or hazardous materials were spilled. A train carrying toxic chemicals derailed there in July 2001, starting a fire that burned for day and required the evacuation of the area. The cause of that derailment has not yet been found after 3 1/2 years.
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February 21
A mysterious power outage left 1,000 customers without power for 8 hours in Berkeley, CA. After power was restored, an investigation could not uncover the cause of the outage.
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February 21
Two separate underground fires caused two different power outages in Madison, WS.
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February 19-23
CA experienced severe flooding from 6 days of rain which knocked out power to thousands. The residents of La Conchita, who experienced deadly mudslides last month, voluntarily evacuated after mudslide warnings. In Newhall, CA, a trailer park was isolated by a flooded highway, and the residents of Gila, NM were temporarily stranded when roads leading in and out of town were closed. Some residents in Crestline, CA in the mountains have been virtually isolated since Jan. 18, when Hwy. 18 was closed from flooding. This storm forced closure of Hwy. 138 also. Some residents of Thousand Palms were isolated as long as 4 days. The San Bernardino flood control system, aging and in need of maintenance, was hammered, while mudslides hit Laguna Beach. At least 230,000 customers lost power. Three people were killed by mudslides and one by a 30' deep sinkhole. Part of one apartment complex and 11 houses had to be evacuated because of mudslides. There were more than 20 mudslides in San Diego. The storm was blamed for 9 deaths.
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February 19
Vandals tampered with a power switch and left 11,300 customers without power for 1 1/2 hours in Shamokin and Coal Township in PA.
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February 17
A car bomb destroyed one vehicle and damaged adjacent cars in a Vancover, WA apartment complex. The explosion was felt for miles around. No one was injured in the blast.
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February 15
The town of Manchester, MA experienced its third power outage this month. The town has suffered repeated outages for two years due to its aging power infrastructure.
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February 13
A train struck a rock on the tracks in Dixon, Mo. It did not derail but spilled a large quantity of diesel fuel.
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February 13
A train derailed in Salem, OR, struck a power pole and knocked out power for miles around. The power was only out for 15 minutes.
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February 11
A train derailment in Oscodo, MI struck the trestle over the AuSable River and collapsed the bridge.
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February 11
A train derailed in San Marcos, TX leading to the evacuation of about 200 residents within a 1000' radius. The residents were not allowed to return home until the next day. The tracks had just been inspected days earlier. The derailment left investigators puzzled because all the track conditions met Federal standards, the train was only traveling at 25 mph and no external cause could be found.
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February 9-10
A 7,000-lb. gas truck crashed in Kaysville, UT, releasing butane. Fumes drifted downhill, where they were ignited several hours later at a home. The flames immediately burned back to the truck, igniting the gas in the truck. This led to the evacuation of about 1500 people for two days and closure of US 89.
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February 8
The body of a water treatment plant chemist in Totowa, NJ was found in a 35' tank where she drowned. Since the facility is gated and secure, and a grate covers the tank, authorities believe she was murdered by a fellow employee. While there was no evidence of sabotage to the water supply, a boil water advisory was issued to 17 local towns, and local school was closed as a precaution. The plant has had 55 water treatment violations in the last 4 years.
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February 8
Eight houses near a gas pipeline which exploded on Feb. 1 near Allentown, PA were evacuated again due to health concerns about gasoline-contaminated soil.
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February 8
Almost 50 residents in Lansing, MI were permanently and abruptly forced to evacuate their apartments when a man drove his car into their apartment building, rupturing a gas line and setting off an explosion and fire that destroyed the building.
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February 7
Five train cars derailed in Cincinnati, OH.
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February 7
A train derailed in Troy, SC, not far from where a derailment last month killed 9 people.
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February 7
A New Hope, PA apartment building was destroyed when workers struck a gas line. Five people lost their homes and local residents had to be evacuated.
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February 6
Two explosions in a Charlotte, NC apartment complex damaged one apartment and a van. The explosion shook houses a quarter-mile away. The BATF caught the person responsible.
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February 6
Eighteen rail cars derailed just south of Cridersville, OH. Electricity was lost in 1200 homes for 6 hours in the nearby town.
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February 4
A coal train derailed for the second time this week in Sauk Rapids, MN.
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February 3
A manhole cover exploded in Fall River, MA, leaving about 2300 customers without power.
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February 3
Twenty-seven coal train cars derailed near Salem, VA.
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February 3
An explosion inside a residential sewer system damage several houses in Laurens, Iowa.
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February 2-3
About 4,000 customers in AZ and NM were without power for 10 hours when a feeder line went down in a remote area.
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February 2
A coal train derailed in Sauk Rapids, MN.
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February 2
An gas explosion at a MBTA substation led to delays throughout the Red Line as a result of the reduced power available for the entire train system in Boston. Hundreds of people were left without power as well.
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February 1
A pipeline exploded west of Allentown, PA, shooting flames 30' skyward and forcing the evacuation of more than 40 homes. Residents could not return home until their houses were checked for toxic vapors, a process that would take 1-2 days. Authorities later attributed the leak to a crack in a valve caused by ice.
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January 31
Five rail cars derailed and spilled 600 gallons of ethanol in Gallup, NM.
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January 31
A locomotive and 4 empty hopper cars derailed near Bennington, KS when the rails buckled from ground moisture.
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January 31
Thirteen train cars derailed in East Deer, PA. Three were carrying toxic hydrogen fluoride, one of which was leaking into the Allegheny River. Two hundred residents in a half-mile radius were hastily evacuated, some to a local church. They could not return home until Wednesday, Feb. 3.
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January 31
Four coal train cars derailed in Croom, MD.
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January 30-31
A railroad switch was tampered with at night in order to cause a train derailment in Rochester, MN. A similar incident in 8/00 caused a derailment and death in Brookings, SD.
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January 30
An ice storm swept through the South, leaving 235,000 customers in GA and 35,000 in AL without power.
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January 30
Two homes were destroyed by an explosion in a NJ neighborhood, apparently due to a serious gas leak in the pipe along the street.
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January 28
A second man parked his vehicle on a railroad track in CA to cause a train derailment. The incident occurred in Irvine and the driver was caught by police before a train came.
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January 28
About 25 oil tanks exploded in Monterey, MS when an electric heater shorted out. The tanks were far from any homes, but rocked houses six miles away.
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January 26
A train track in a town in Alberta, CA was vandalized twice in one morning in an effort to derail a train. A teenage male dressed in dark clothing and a black hood was seen in the vicinity.
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January 26
An underground pipeline ruptured and spilled 63,000 gallons of oil into the Kentucky River. A 12-mile oil slick was contained before it reached the Ohio River, where it could have contaminated drinking water.
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January 26
The worst train disaster since 1999 occurred when a man parked his Jeep Cherokee on a train track in Glendale, CA, doused it with gas and watched as two trains collided, killing 11 people and injured almost 200. The man allegedly wanted to create a "horrific tragedy" to impress his wife. A total of 20 people died in train accidents in January.
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January 25
An explosion at an acetylene production plant in Perth Amboy, NJ killed two people.
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January 25
An explosion occurred at a feed mill in Arcadia, LA, closing it indefinitely.
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January 24
An explosion and fire in a flour mill in Enid, OK destroyed the structure and caused the evacuation of local residences. Large chunks of concrete were thrown up to 500'.
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January 23-26
Phoenix, AZ, the nation's 5th largest city with 1.4 million residents, had a major water scare when flooding clogged filters at the Val Vista water treatment plant while 2 plants were closed for routine maintenance. This forced officials to ask for water conservation on 1/24, then issue a boil order on 1/25. The order was lifted on 1/26. Mesa, AZ had to revert to issuing a conservation order and using well water for 7 days.
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January 23
A fire attributed to a vagrant destroyed the electrical system of the "C" train in NY, which will require up to five years to repair. The accident caused further delays in the remaining train system.
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January 22-23
A major winter storm swept across the midwest into New England over the weekend, where some parts received 3' of snow. Iowa was hit with 60+ mph winds which left more than 3500 customers without power. Over 30,000 homes were powerless in MA, where winds were as high as 84 mph. Some were homebound even on Monday, as the snow was too deep for snowplows in some locations.
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January 20
An Amtrak train partially derailed near a terminal in Washington, D.C. The cause was thought to be a malfunctioning switch.
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January 20
An explosion of unknown origin injured a bridge construction worker while using an acetylene torch.
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January 19
A 115,000 volt power line inexplicably fell in Millbrae, CA and caused about 28,000 customers to lose power. Repairs were delayed because an endangered species restricted the use of heavy equipment.
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January 18
Seventeen train cars derailed in Schoolcraft, MI and spilled lubricant.
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January 18
Nineteen train cars derailed at 3:45 a.m., dumping almost 2,000 tons of coal in Knoxville, TN.
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January 17
A 75,000 sq. ft. warehouse full of petroleum products was destroyed when a fire led to a series of explosions in Minot, ND.
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January 16
Six train cars derailed near Bristow, OK.
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January 16
Two locomotives derailed in Gully, MN. There were no injuries or property damage. Cause of the accident was unknown.
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January 16
Nine train cars derailed in White Earth, ND. The cars were carrying hazardous materials but none spilled.
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January 16
Eleven train cars derailed near the University of Memphis, dumping tons of coal.
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January 16
Five train cars carrying timber and paper derailed in Bellows Falls, VT.
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January 15
Nine train cars derailed in Gallatin, TN and destroyed 2 of 3 vehicles and a boat at a residence. The family was forced to move into a hotel.
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January 15
A 26-car train derailment resulted in a minor spill of methanol in rural Texas between Ft. Worth and Houston.
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January 14
Fears of the Prado dam failure from recent heavy rains led to the evacuation of more than 800 homes near Corona, CA. Also, the mountain community of Follows Camp, CA became isolated from the world when the San Gabriel River flooded and food and medical supplies had to be flown in.
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January 13
An Amtrak train derailed at the Utah/Colorado line when the train struck a pickup-sized boulder on the tracks.
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January 13
Over 9,000 customers were without power from a wind storm in Louisville, KY, which has experienced frequent outages in the past year.
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January 12
An underground explosion left a 100' crater in the Ford City Mall parking lot, injuring 10 people and wrecking 75 cars. A faulty pipe was thought to be the cause, but when unearthed was in good shape. The cause of the accident is still unknown. The explosion could be felt for miles. Local residents had to boil their water.
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January 12
Some rail cars jumped the track in Winnipeg, Canada, where a strip mall, including a daycare, was evacuated. A propane tanker was among the cars but did not leak.
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January 11
Two trains collided in Banks, AL after a manual switch was set improperly, causing both trains to be on the same track.
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January 10
Four rail cars derailed south of Dunsmuir, CA.
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January 5-10
Over 37,000 customers were still without power in PA, some since the beginning of an initial ice storm on 1/6. A second storm on 1/8 complicated restoration efforts. Originally over 200,000 lost power. Tens of thousands were still without power in Ohio from the same storm, forcing some into shelters. Over 150,000 homes lost power in IN.
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January 10
Widespread flooding in CA led to a mudslide in the town of La Conchita, where 10 bodies were recovered, while 8 remained missing. Even as of 1/12, the whole area was still considered unsafe. At least 9 were killed in other parts of the state after 2 weeks of record rains. The same storm destroyed homes in AZ and Utah, and caused snow that blocked roads from CO to CA. The storm later caused widespread flooding as it moved into the midwest. Tornadoes were spawned in Arkansas and Louisiana. The storm displaced hundreds from their homes and knocked out power to thousands. On Feb. 4 President Bush declared 7 CA counties a disaster area.
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January 9
The Sierra Nevada received the most snow since 1916, a maximum of 19', where more than 220 Amtrak passengers spent the night in their train stuck in the snow. Meanwhile, a maximum of 250,000 are without power in Ohio and surrounding states as 28 Ohio counties are declared a state of emergency.
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January 8
At least 17 cars on a train carrying hazardous chemicals derailed in Calhoun, AL at night. Fortunately no evacuation was necessary.
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January 8
Two rail cars carrying industrial strength hydrogen peroxide, a hazardous material, derailed Saturday in Houston when the engine train caught fire. Local residents were notified and a local highway was temporarily closed.
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January 8
Another manually-operated switch in the open position caused a second train derailment, in Bieber, CA, similar to the Graniteville, SC train accident which occured two days previously. Seven locomotives and 14 cars were derailed, causing almost $1 million in damage.
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January 7
An explosion in a Los Gatos, CA car dealership destroyed most of the building and was felt miles away at the town of Saratoga. The ground shook like an earthquake in the explosion, which seriously injured 2 men.
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January 6
Nine people were killed and more than 300 injured in the deadliest train accident with hazardous material in three decades, when a train derailed and released chlorine gas in Graniteville, S.C. Investigators said a manual switch on the main line was open, which sent the train into a parked train. A 3-man railroad crew was responsible for the switch. Over five thousand people in a one mile radius around the site were immediately evacuated, and as of 1/12/05 only a few could return home. These people had to abruptly leave their houses and live away from home more than a week. In 2003 there were only 25 derailments compared to 119 in 1980. The disaster so damaged a textile mill that eventually 350 people had to be laid off. The accident was eventually blamed on the 3-man crew, who were all fired, although it was never proven that they failed to return the switch to its proper position.
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January 2-6
A winter storm crossed the US, leaving 100,000 without power in Kansas, 100,000 in Indiana, and 250,000 without power in Ohio, where some were off the grid for 5 days. At least 20 were killed in CA.
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January 6
One train car derailed in Dunsmuir, CA.
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January 5
A train tunnel partially collapsed in Grant Co., Ohio, causing a train to derail and temporarily trapping two employees.
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