Derailment after derailment. They just keep happening.

Since early February, there have been at least five train derailments in North America carrying crude from North Dakota’s Bakken Shale. These accidents have sparked increased calls from citizens, the rail industry and lawmakers for the federal government to increase safety regulations.

To keep up with these incidents and new safety regulations, PublicSource provides a roundup of stories every Friday. 

Nearly two years after 47 people died in a fiery crude oil train derailment in Quebec, federal regulators in the U.S. and Canada unveiled their final rule to improve the safety of crude-by-rail, according to Politico .

DOT issues final rules on flammable oil trains

The administration of Gov. Tom Wolf announced it hired a renowned rail expert to focus on the safety of trains hauling millions of gallons of flammable crude oil across Pennsylvania daily.

Gov. Wolf steps up his crude-by-rail safety game with hiring of rail expert

Reach Natasha Khan at 412-315-0261 or nkhan@publicsource.org. Follow her on Twitter @khantasha.

This story was made possible by donations to our independent, nonprofit newsroom.

Can you help us keep going with a gift?

We’re Pittsburgh’s Public Source. Since 2011, we’ve taken pride in serving our community by delivering accurate, timely, and impactful journalism — without paywalls. We believe that everyone deserves access to information about local decisions and events that affect them.

But it takes a lot of resources to produce this reporting, from compensating our staff, to the technology that brings it to you, to fact-checking every line, and much more. Reader support is crucial to our ability to keep doing this work.

If you learned something new from this story, consider supporting us with a donation today. Your donation helps ensure that everyone in Allegheny County can stay informed about issues that impact their lives. Thank you for your support!

Natasha is director of audience & visuals strategy at Pittsburgh's Public Source. She runs the organization's audience and visual team. She manages social media, the website, brand strategy and works...