On August 12, 2015, at 10:39 p.m., central daylight time, a Norfolk Southern Railway
Company (NS) conductor trainee working at the Lone Star Gas facility (H 82) on the NS Alabama
Division in Petal, Mississippi, was killed when he was pinned between two tank cars that were
being coupled on the industry track. The weather at the time of the accident was 77°F and partly
cloudy.
The accident occurred inside the Lone Star liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) transloading
facility in Petal, Mississippi, about 5 miles east of Hattiesburg. H 82 was east of the NS main track, a siding track, and a back track. Train movements on the main track were authorized by track warrants and governed by operating rules, general orders, timetable instructions, and the signal indications of an absolute block system.
We determined that the probable cause of the accident was the conductor trainee stepping in between two tank cars without protection for an unknown reason during the shove movement.
