MARION COUNTY, Fla. — Residents in Marion County are demanding accountability after a massive rail tie fire in Dunnellon prompted the city and county to issue a local state of emergency.
According to an air monitoring report obtained by 9 Investigates, about 100,000 railroad ties soaked in creosote, a wood-preserving chemical that can be potentially cancer-causing, burned in the fire.
State and local investigators are now monitoring air and soil quality as officials work to determine how the fire started and whether long-term environmental risks remain.
The rail ties are owned by Track Line Rail, which according to documents on file with the Florida Department of Environmental Protection, planned to start a shredding and grinding operation on the property owned by CSX. Marion County says it is preparing to take legal action against both private companies.
Residents living near the site say they were alarmed by the smoke and continue to worry about potential health impacts.
“I just saw the big black smoke,” said Ruth Churchwell, who lives near the fire site.
Churchwell says she smelled the smoke before seeing flames and added that her breathing issues have worsened since the fire near her Dunnellon home. She says she is now taking precautions.
“Stay inside. And when I go out, wear a mask,” Churchwell said.
According to an air quality monitoring report, a team was hand-monitoring air quality collecting data between 13:30 to 23:59 Eastern Time (ET) on the day of the fire.
Per the data, none of the readings exceeded action levels, which is why evacuation orders were not issued.
However, medical doctor and toxicologist Ernest Chiodo says in the aftermath of a fire like this there are both long-term and short-term concerns.
“When the wood burns with the creosote in it, you can have formation of what’s called polyaromatic hydrocarbons that could cause an increased risk of cancer. So that’s the long-term concern.”
Chiodo explained that state and local leaders are likely to pay close attention to soil quality.
“If you have a large volume of this material burning, there’s the chance it can get into the ground, groundwater, and contaminate people’s wells. In addition... It can contaminate the soil. And if you have kids playing in that soil. They can be exposed to the cancer-causing agents,” Chiodo said.
According to Marion County, soil samples taken so far have not detected concerns and the Florida Department of Environmental Protection is working on a plan for remediation, which could include digging up enough soil to ensure hazards do not remain on site.
Dunnellon residents characterized the incident as a potential environmental disaster and questioned city and county leaders on why the rail ties were on the property to begin with during a council meeting earlier this week.
“This is a complete, total failure. The county, the state, the city, you failed to protect our community,” said Leslie Babington.
For months leading up to the fire, Marion County and the city of Dunnellon had asked the state to revoke Track Line Rail’s permit, and the county says they were preparing legal action to force the removal of the ties due to safety hazards and environmental concerns.
According to CSX, prior to the fire, several thousand rail ties had been removed and that process was ongoing.
While the state never revoked Track Line Rail’s permit, records obtained by 9 Investigates show the state flagged potential issues at the site weeks before the fire.
During an inspection on December 15th, inspectors cited “potential noncompliance” with Track Line Rail’s Stormwater Pollution Prevention Plan and “Best Management Practices”.
The inspection also flagged a large stockpile of rail ties, giving the company 30 days to respond and address the issues.
However, before that deadline expired, the ties burned.
The county is now seeking a court order to remove the remaining rail ties completely.
The Florida Department of Environmental Protection didn’t answer Channel 9s questions about why that permit for Track Line Rail was issued and why it was not revoked.
Track Line Rail also failed to meet Channel 9s deadline for comment.
However, CSX says it is cooperating with officials during the cleanup.
The city of Dunnellon’s latest update can be found here.
View CSX’ letter to the mayor of Dunnellon below:
“Thank you, your team, and the wider community for their work in the aftermath of the Feb. 1 fire. We understand the importance of providing timely information about our ongoing work to help safely and quickly restore the area as we strive to be good neighbors to the City of Dunnellon. Since the incident, CSX personnel have been on location working alongside local first responders and community officials. The fire was extinguished on Tuesday, Feb. 3, at approximately 10:20 a.m. ET, and efforts have transitioned to cleanup and recovery of the impacted site, with CSX teams remaining to support the overall efforts. The railroad ties involved in Sunday’s incident are owned by Track Line Rail, which is handling and relocating the material. The rail line where the ties were stored is leased and operated by Florida Northern Railroad, a shortline railroad operating on CSX property. Track Line and Florida Northern had already removed thousands of railroad ties prior to the incident. While CSX does not own the ties or operate the rail line, we understand the concerns expressed by the community, and we are actively working with all parties to help ensure the site recovery is handled safely, promptly, and responsibly. To continue the removal process, rail cars are enroute and scheduled to be interchanged with Florida Northern Railroad tomorrow in Newberry, Florida for delivery into Dunnellon. Track Line Rail will be positioned to load and remove the remaining rail ties as safely and expeditiously as possible. CSX is coordinating environmental response activities with the Florida Department of Environmental Protection (FDEP).
Here is what we know:
• To date, air monitoring conducted by CSX’s air monitoring contractor GHD has shown no detection, and results have been shared with the Marion County Emergency Management Agency.
• CSX’s environmental contractor, Arcadis, is in coordination with FDEP and evaluating next steps.
• Once the ties are removed, we’ll continue to work with FDEP and continue coordination with Florida Northern and Track Line Rail. For questions related to environmental conditions, residents may call 1-888-479-6583.
For questions regarding claims or property damage, residents should contact Track Line Rail at 312-848-1812. We hope this provides important information and we encourage you to share this letter with the broader community. CSX is committed to being a responsible partner in the locations where we operate. We will continue to communicate with your office as work progresses and appreciate the cooperation of Marion County first responders and the Dunnellon community throughout this process.”
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