Hundreds of railcars ordered removed from service due to derailment risk

Axios - Train companies have been warned to remove certain cars from service after Norfolk Southern discovered loose wheels on railcars during the cleanup of last weekend's derailment in Ohio.... After Norfolk's discovery, the Association of American Railroads issued an advisory to stop using steel coil cars with those wheels due to "an increased risk of an out of gage derailment."

• "This is an uncommon defect that can create horizontal movement in the car as it travels down the track and could lead to a derailment," AAR spokeswoman Jessica Kahanek told Axios.
• 675 cars were initially identified and impacted by the advisory, she said.
• The cars should not be used or interchanged "until those wheel sets can be replaced," Kahanek said.
• "This urgent action was a voluntary, proactive and necessary step aimed at ensuring equipment health and integrity," she added.