On July 6, 2013, a train carrying volatile crude oil from North Dakota exploded in the Canadian town of Lac-Megantic, killing 47 people and incinerating the downtown. Since then, oil trains have exploded on the U.S. side of the border, where a surge in domestic oil production has sent millions of trainloads of crude through cities and small towns.
The Weather Channel and InsideClimate News teamed up to investigate the problem of exploding railcars in “Boom: America’s Explosive Oil-by-Rail Problem.” The documentary accompanies an ICN investigation of why federal regulations to protect the public have been stalled by the railroads and the oil industry.