WILLMAR — U.S. Sen. Amy Klobuchar, D-Minn., said the train derailment and fire in Raymond early Thursday has added urgency to legislation which she co-sponsors about rail safety.
Klobuchar said she was notified early Thursday by Secretary of Transportation Pete Buttigieg.
“My heart sank,” she said of receiving the news.
Klobuchar, who plans to visit the scene Friday, said she has been working on rail safety legislation with Ohio’s senators, Republican J.D. Vance and Democrat Sherrod Brown. Several other senators have signed on to the bill as well.
She was relieved that the situation in Raymond did not cause the type of contamination that resulted from a derailment in East Palestine, Ohio.
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“We’re very fortunate, with very different circumstances in terms of the long-term impact,” she added.
“The work of our first responders in the Raymond area and Kandiyohi County is incredible; they were there all night,” she said.
Klobuchar said the legislation the senators are sponsoring should be moving through Senate committees in the coming months.
“I’ve been working on rail safety for years, and I’ve never been more optimistic,” she said. “We need better safety standards for the trains. We’re seeing longer trains; we need two people on the trains.”
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