Alabama train accident leads to explosion and oil spil

A train carrying crude oil has derailed in western Alabama, spilling oil and leaving 11 carriages burning in the area.

The 90 DOT-108 carriages that were hauled by the train were carrying 30,000 gallons of crude, or 64,000 barrels in all. Of the carriages, 25 derailed and threw flames 300ft into the sky, which were left to burn down for 18 hours by rail operator Genesee & Wyoming.

According to officials, an unknown amount of crude oil spilled into an adjacent marshland, but has now been contained.

The accident fuels a push for strict standards for oil rail shipments, including better testing of potentially explosive ultra-light shale crude as well as enhanced standards for rail tank carriages.

Regulators have cited that the wheels of carriages that were manufactured prior to 2011 are dangerously prone to puncture.

Alabama & Gulf Coast Railway president Bill Jasper told Reuters: "All the evidence we need to figure out what happened is underneath the wreckage."

The train was carrying crude that originated in North Dakota from Amory, Mississippi to a refinery located in Walnut Hill, Florida. The train was to be pumped into a regional pipeline and delivered to the 80,000 barrel-per-day Shell Chemicals plant near Mobile, Alabama.

Genesee & Wyoming Inc are investigating the cause of the incident, which is yet to be known.