AIKEN - Avondale Mills Inc. is suing Norfolk Southern Corp. and three fired employees for damages caused by the January train crash and chlorine spill, according to a copy of the lawsuit obtained Wednesday.
The suit states that the train company and its workers were negligent and have "caused Avondale's textile business catastrophic damage."
Their conduct "will also have a substantial negative impact on Avondale's revenues and earnings for the foreseeable future," according to the suit, which was filed in Aiken's Court of Common Pleas on Sept. 26 but later moved to federal court.
The Graniteville company is seeking compensation for harm done to its business and unspecified punitive damages. The suit does not mention a dollar figure.
Expensive textile equipment and circuitry in four of Avondale's mills were damaged by chlorine gas that seeped from the wreckage, the suit states. The corrosive gas also damaged the company's computer system, its main office and administrative buildings.
"The damage is still cropping up on a day-to-day basis," Avondale spokesman Stephen Felker Jr. said. "It's really hard to tell. I don't know when we'll have that final figure. It seems there's always something new popping up."
Textile production has yet to return to full capacity at Avondale, and the company announced Tuesday that it is laying off about 350 people.
Avondale was forced to cease operations for eight days after the Jan. 6 crash between two Norfolk Southern trains, which released an estimated 60 tons of chlorine. The early morning release sent hundreds of people to the hospital and killed nine, including six who were working at Avondale when the crash occurred.
When Avondale employees returned to work, many of them were diverted from their normal duties and asked to assist with cleanup and rescue operations, the suit states.
"Even now, Avondale personnel continue to spend substantial time devoted to restoration efforts, and this condition is expected to prevail for the foreseeable future," it says.
The cause of the crash remains under investigation by the National Transportation Safety Board and the Federal Railroad Administration. Investigators have said the likely cause was a track switch that was improperly aligned, which sent Norfolk Southern's moving locomotive hurtling into a parked train.
The three-man Norfolk Southern crew that was responsible for aligning the switch also is named in the suit. Benjamin Aiken, Mike Ford and James Thornton, who live near Columbia, were fired after the crash.
In response to questions about the suit, a Norfolk Southern spokeswoman referred to a legal rebuttal filed by the company, which acknowledges that its crew failed to properly align the switch but that it has tried to assist with Avondale's recovery.
Norfolk Southern "has played and continues to play a vital role in Avondale's recovery. ... Avondale has not cooperated in mitigating its damages and allowing an efficient and expeditions (sic) repair of its facilities," it states.
Reach Josh Gelinas at (803) 648-1395, ext. 111, or josh.gelinas@augustachronicle.com.
The lawsuit
Avondale Mills Inc. alleges in a lawsuit against Norfolk Southern Corp. that the railroad is responsible for the January train crash and chlorine leak that damaged the textile company's business. Avondale contends Norfolk Southern failed to:
- Train its crew to properly align a track switch, allowing a moving train to collide with a parked one
- Use needed safety devices that would have warned the approaching locomotive that the switch was not correctly aligned
- Implement a procedure that could have controlled or at least contained the release of hazardous materials
Company view
"The derailment was avoidable and should not have happened. It was caused by the carelessness of Norfolk Southern.
"Within a couple of days of the derailment, the chairman of Norfolk Southern acknowledged to me that his company was responsible.
"For a few weeks, Norfolk Southern provided crews to help clean our facilities. I am disappointed that they did a very poor job. Their work was incomplete, ineffective and ultimately wasted our time and resources. The railroad then walked away and left us to clean up the mess they created. We are now dealing with their lawyers."
- Avondale President G. Stephen Felker, in The Avondale Sun, a company publication
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