Madsen went off the track

Contrary to what columnist Sue Lani Madsen says, I do not feel the wreck at Mosier distracts us, but reminds us of the potential for disaster posed by oil trains running through downtown.

That’s the issue she conveniently diverted in her column. The broken bolt could have occurred in Spokane, and hundreds could have been harmed. The train that crashed in Mosier passed within feet of the homes of hundreds of residents in downtown Spokane.

Rather than accept risk, let’s truly mitigate by taking action. Mitigation means doing the best we - the railroads, specifically - can do to reduce potential for catastrophe. Madsen says: “The decision was not based on economics, but on function and safety.” I don’t believe that. Fundamentally, it’s all economics, otherwise the safest possible tanker cars would have been on the tracks years ago and the lives lost would not have been tallied. Let’s not let economics sidetrack mitigation, which demands: using the best available tanker technology; investing in rail infrastructure and personnel to reduce failure, and slowing trains as they rumble through downtowns.

Having a response plan is great as long as it isn’t you who is incinerated. Sound thinking means prevention.

Jim Kolva

Spokane