Disasters

"Regulators are one step closer to adopting new standards for oil trains that Congress mandated last year."

"Firefighters are tackling larger and more aggressive wildfires as drought conditions continue for a fifth year in California, drying out swaths of forest land."

"The House on Wednesday passed a bill to reauthorize the federal pipeline safety oversight board."

"At DOT's headquarters in Washington, D.C., the agency's Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration (PHMSA) hosted an in-depth discussion of what went wrong during a March 2014 explosion at an LNG facility in Plymouth, Wash., that led to five injuries and $72 million in property damage."

"MOSIER, Ore. — Local politicians and residents reacted with shock and anger Monday as Union Pacific began running trains through this tiny Columbia River Gorge town just three days after a fiery derailment forced residents to evacuate and water and sewage systems to shut down."

"Tropical Storm Colin has strengthened in the Gulf of Mexico and will bring the threat of heavy rain to parts of Florida and the Southeast Monday and Tuesday. This system was first named Tropical Depression Three late Sunday morning and strengthened into a tropical storm late Sunday afternoon."

"An oil-train derailment and fire has damaged essential city services in a small Oregon town, authorities said Sunday. The Mosier waste water treatment plant and sewer system are not operational as a result of the derailment Friday of 16 of the 96 tank cars on a Union Pacific train. A fire in four of the cars was extinguished Saturday morning."

"Record flooding along the swollen Brazos River in Texas on Tuesday prompted mandatory evacuations after at least six people died in the worst floods in more than 100 years."

"Efforts in Congress are heating up to bring some relief to California’s historic drought, just as the dry summer season is starting."

"Some 2,000 residents of wildfire-ravaged Fort McMurray, Alberta, will not be able to return home this week as planned because of the risks posed by debris and contaminants including 'caustic' ash, Alberta Premier Rachel Notley said on Monday."