Could Ohio's Toxic Train Disaster Have Been Prevented?

Two weeks ago, a train carrying toxic chemicals through a small town in eastern Ohio derailed in a fiery crash and flames and black smoke filled the sky. Federal investigators have said the derailment was caused by a mechanical issue with a rail car axle.

But rail companies have used their influence to lobby against federal regulations that could have made an event like this less possible — including mechanical safety upgrades for trains carrying hazardous chemicals and what chemicals are even classified as hazardous. With such trains criss-crossing thousands of miles across the U.S., the event in Ohio is a warning for the country.

The Lever, a national reader-supported investigative journalism outlet, recently investigated the rail industry's lobbying against proposed federal regulations. We speak with reporter Matthew Cunningham-Cook.

Two weeks ago, a train carrying toxic chemicals through a small town in eastern Ohio derailed in a fiery crash and flames and black smoke filled the sky. Federal investigators have said the derailment was caused by a mechanical issue with a rail car axle.

But rail companies have used their influence to lobby against federal regulations that could have made an event like this less possible — including mechanical safety upgrades for trains carrying hazardous chemicals and what chemicals are even classified as hazardous. With such trains criss-crossing thousands of miles across the U.S., the event in Ohio is a warning for the country.

The Lever, a national reader-supported investigative journalism outlet, recently investigated the rail industry's lobbying against proposed federal regulations. We speak with reporter Matthew Cunningham-Cook.