The Daily Times, Maryville, TN 10/11:
Judge O.K.'s pretrial merger of CSX lawsuits, CSX asks cases be thrown out
KNOXVILLE — Three federal lawsuits filed against CSX Transportation Inc. over a train derailment and chemical fire in Maryville can be joined into a single case, though CSX is still trying to get the litigation thrown out of court.
In a Friday hearing in Knoxville’s U.S. District Court, U.S. Magistrate Judge Clifford Shirley O.K.’d a merger of the cases for pretrial fact-finding purposes.
CSX is facing three federal lawsuits in the July 2 derailment of a train car in the area of Mt. Tabor and Old Mt. Tabor roads. The car was carrying a toxic chemical called acrylonitrile, which caught fire and began leaking into the ground as heavy smoke and toxic fumes traveled the air. The incident forced the evacuation of about 5,000 residents from a two-mile radius.
SNIP
Expired grease
But at Thursday’s hearing, mechanical engineer James Whelan told U.S. Magistrate Judge C. Clifford Shirley Jr. the roller bearing on the derailed tank car was well past its useful life, and should have been replaced.
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