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Mitigating Crash Fires with Fuel Additives

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One of the most serious factors in major accidents is fuel fire, which can kill or injure those involved in an ac­cident and prevent rescuers from getting to those in need. 

This was the case on September 12, 2008, when a California Metrolink train slammed into a freight train, killing 25 and injuring 138 people. Fires, such as the one resulting from this crash, are particularly hazardous when they involve freight. Fuel fires can often trigger sec­ondary fires as freight ignites, producing toxic smoke clouds and intense heat. 

Fortunately, the approach to transporta­tion safety has been, and continues to be, two-pronged. Both accident preven­tion and accident mitigation have made significant advancements as new tech­nologies are developed and adopted. And, as the Metrolink tragedy demon­strates, when preventive measures fail, the need to mitigate the effects of that failure are paramount. 

Last updated: Thursday, August 29, 2024