CSX Railyard Fatality
CSX Railyard Fatality Save Email Print
Posted: 1:52 AM Oct 27, 2007
 Last Updated: 1:16 PM Oct 27, 2007
 Reporter: Kimberly Burcham
Email Address: kimberly.burcham@wsaz.com
38 comments
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Raceland Police say William L. Worsham, 52, died after being stuck between two rail cars in the Greenup County CSX rail yard in Raceland, Kentucky.

It happened around 1:20 a.m. This is the same rail yard where several chemical leaks have occurred recently.

The cause of the accident is under investigation. Officials with CSX have not released any information regarding the incident.

It is unclear where Worsham is from, but police say Worsham worked for CSX.

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Posted by: Anonymous on Nov 15, 2007 at 07:13 PM
God bless all of Bill's family and friends, he will be missed greatly. My sister lives by him and his wife, so they knew him well, he was a good man. We'll all miss him.
Posted by: Friend on Nov 1, 2007 at 11:44 AM
My prayers go to the Family, Friends and Co-workers of this wonderful man, Bill Worsham. He was an amazing person and touched so many lives...Bill loved his family and talked about them often. Bill made a difference in this world - he gave people a smile, look into your eyes and listened when you talked to him. BILL CARED... I am so thankful for the memories of Bill...God bless...
Posted by: old head conductor on Oct 30, 2007 at 11:26 PM
TO the family of this one of a kind man Iam so sorry for your lost. as you can see every one that was around him cared a lot for him he was so friendly.He was a joy to be around he was so proud of his kids he always talked about them.Our prayers will always be with you god bless you . I would like to express some of my feelings about CSX . Ive been at that company for close to 30 yrs I have seen the good and the bad , we have had some good bosses over the years, CSX has provided a good paying job for me to take care of my family. When I hired in you had to be there 2 years as a brakeman before you became a conductor, now all of that has changed we now have a boss that is 31 yrs old the last place he was at fired 5 employees he came to russell with a iron fist.look were thats got him a bunch of injured employees and a fatality mr claus , mr williams, mr imgram .we will fight back you all have put these workers and there families and these communities in to much danger god bless you to !!
Posted by: concerned on Oct 30, 2007 at 03:19 PM
I have heard that CSX does not pay into worker's compensation...They rather you sue them and fight for it if you get injured...That is why they have so many rules and regulations so if you do get hurt, they will only put the blame on you and use the safety rules to their advantage so they won't have to pay for the injuries....I have heard nothing but negative remarks from the people that work at CSX and how the management in Russell doesn't care for their employees....I heard they pay well but how far will money go when your mamed or killed?
Posted by: Bill's Friend on Oct 30, 2007 at 03:18 PM
My thoughts & prayers go to Bill's Family and Friends. Bill was an AWESOME person and a good friend. This is truly heartbreaking for all that knew him. I feel very blessed to call Bill my friend. Anyone that met Bill had a TRUE, CARING, LOVING friend. He was an amazing person and I think that it is horrible that people leave comments blaming others...It was a horrible ACCIDENT. I think that our focus should be on praying for Bill's family and friends. Rest in peace, Bill...
Posted by: Concerned on Oct 30, 2007 at 09:11 AM
My thoughts and prayers go out Bill's family and friends. To his co-workers I pray that you are able to work without incident or harm. To CSX management and its greedy board of directors, I beg you "WAKE UP". The training program you currently have in place is a joke. For a Fortune 500 company, you are certainly missing the boat when it comes to safety. For a rail carrier who preaches it to its employees on a daily basis,you need to practice what you preach. To have an employee who's only been "marked up" as a conductor for two weeks, training a new employee on a third shift yard job is asking for trouble. The blame for this tradgedy definitely falls on CSX management, those in charge locally and those in Jacksonville, FL. If you are going to spend the money to train your employees, the least you could do is train them well. To the local Management in Russell yard, listen to your ground people. Put a mentoring crew with every new hire and let them be trained without quotas or fear.
Posted by: new conductor's wife on Oct 29, 2007 at 10:54 PM
My husband was one of Bill's really good friends. They were hired on together and became very close from the beginning. I am so thankful that my husband was fortunate enough to have a person like Bill come into his life, and am so sad that he's not here to continue their friendship. My husband said from the beginning that he was the nicest man you could ever meet, always with a smile on his face. Many people now have a new guardian angel. My deepest sympathy goes out to Bill's loved ones. I am so sorry.
Posted by: Concerned on Oct 29, 2007 at 06:32 PM
Prays are with Bills family. Anonymous We are paying attention to our own lives. Be it a chemical leak, sludge leak, death or derailment we as citizen living within a mile of the Raceland yards have a right to protect our families. We ask this company to comply with safety regulation. It is not only the city of Raceland involved with these spills, it is anyone living anywhere along US 23 and the men who work this dangerous job daily. All the cars in questioning were defective and it would appear the men working this local yard found the errors made by employees elsewhere. Perhaps you need more information, before you go shooting off you uninformed thoughts. Corporations need to comply with all health and safety regulations like CSX, DuPont, or AK Steel.
Posted by: Anthony on Oct 29, 2007 at 04:15 PM
Your absouletly right, CSX does not train their employees like they should be taught, as I stated, you are forced and yes FORCED to go thru their so-called REDI-CENTER in Atlanta, Ga. and be harrassed by all those instructors they have down there and when you come back, well you are such a nervous wreck, you are liable to make a mistake in which they will hang you for it!!! I feel really really sorry for the family of that conductor who was fatally killed but I am sure he really didn't get the proper training he should have gotten!! And yes, you pay all those Thousands of Dollars and for what, if you don't pass engineer's school, YOUR OUT!! THEY DON"T CARE ABOUT YOU AT ALL!!!
Posted by: Nichole on Oct 29, 2007 at 02:22 PM
I had the pleasure of working with Bill Worsham at the American Water Company. Bill was always a very generous and kind man. Bill would be the first to offer his help and go above and beyond. My thoughts and prayers go out to his friends and family at this. Especially to you, Megan, whom he always spoke of.
Posted by: Anonymous on Oct 29, 2007 at 02:06 PM
As I had written earlier I am very sorry for the loss this family is going through. ...The people(at least some of them) who are on the news complaining about csx are not only doing it for themselves but also for the safety of the csx employees! My husband was one of these people on the news! He is trying to get safety equipment for the firefighters and police officers in the event of a major chemical spill. Some people say to move from where I live, why should I? CSX has a responsibility to keep their workers safe and the people of the community safe from the chemicals they carry on their trains. Peoples lives should be worth more to them than money!
Posted by: Anthony on Oct 29, 2007 at 01:12 PM
CSX does not care about their employees whatsoever!!! I worked for this so-called company and I know all they care about is watching you and seeing what they can do to get rid of you and your job!!! They force you to go thru their engineer training class in Atlanta,GA and if you don't suceed, well, you have no job, no future and they will blackball you from ever getting another job!!!! Thats the good-ole CSX Mentality!!!
Posted by: Wife of an Engineer on Oct 29, 2007 at 12:31 PM
My prayers and heart felt sympathy goes out to the family of Bill Worsham. May each and every message you read gives comfort to you. God Bless you all!
Posted by: Dave on Oct 29, 2007 at 08:22 AM
Bill Worsham was one of the kindest, most caring people I have ever known. I was blessed to be able to have called him a friend. My thoughts and prayers are with his children and Parents.
Posted by: htlong on Oct 29, 2007 at 07:00 AM
this is a sad day at csx. there training of new employees is a joke. its all on paper. bill passed all the test but wasnt allowed to work with seasoned veterans who could teach him what the books could not. bill weas rushed like so many new hires into service without proper training....sad to say i feel there will be more accidents in the future
Posted by: Tom on Oct 28, 2007 at 11:03 PM
I did not know Bill very well, but I know his three daughters (one of which has Downs Syndrome). They are devastated. They loved him very much. Please keep them in your prayers during this difficult time.
Posted by: Kentucky on Oct 28, 2007 at 10:40 PM
Let's hold a townhall meeting. An open forum. CSX needs to host a forum where the public can ask questions and get answers. How many people need to be put in dire harm or killed before this gets properly addressed? We feel helpless as citizens living here.
Posted by: Vanessa on Oct 28, 2007 at 10:12 PM
My sincere Condolences go out to this Family! I did not know of a Fourth daughter, but I knew his other Three. I knew them very well. It is such a tragedy! He will be missed by many... Anytime Bill's name was mentioned, all you would ever hear was how Great of a Man he was!! He was always seen with a smile on his face, He loved his Girls Very much! This family will always be in my prayers... To MISSY, if you are reading this, we love you very much & are very sorry for your loss. Vanessa, Ryan & Family
Posted by: ALL on Oct 28, 2007 at 09:37 PM
We are praying for this family during this difficult time. May God bless them all.
Posted by: dismayed at public outlook on Oct 28, 2007 at 09:13 PM
People we need to have a heart! This is not about chemical leaks or CSX killing an entire community. This is about a father, husband, son, and brother that lost his life. This should not be portrayed by the media as a result of recent events that have occurred in the Russell Yard. All forms of media have put more emphasis on the previous chemical leaks and not the loss of this man's life. Enough is enough from the media. Any time you are working with equipment of this magnitude, there are risks that you take. As an employee of CSX my heart goes out to this family. I know the risks that this man and every employee of CSX takes. Please look at this as a time to send thoughts and prayers to Bill's family. The community was not and is not at risk from this ACCIDENT. It's time for people to have a heart and think of someone other than themselves. God be with the family!
Posted by: Shawnita Rider on Oct 28, 2007 at 09:01 PM
I got to know this family when his daughter was in the hospital at st. mary's about a month or so ago. We could not have met nicer people. He was so kind. I am very sorry for this family. He even brought my brother some Soduko books to the hospital and taught them how to work the puzzles. His daughter and my mom was in the hospital for quite some time together and allthough we are still there we think about them often and still pray for them. We were very fortunate to meet this whole family. Thanks so much for the kindness that you showed our family and my heart and prayers go out to you in this time of need. It has been a rough time for you all for some time now with Megan being sick and now this. I am so so sorry for all of you. My dad says to tell you all he is still praying for you all as well.
Posted by: co-worker on Oct 28, 2007 at 06:17 PM
I am so sorry about the loss and pray for the family. I worked with Bill and he was an extremely nice person who was very proud of his family. CSX is becoming very dangerous by using threats to the employees about their job to the point they cannot do the job without worrying about being fired for anything and everything they do. Constant harassment to the point new employees feel they have to rush. Plus here is a new employee, and yet he was training someone and had a trainee with him during the accident. Instead of him being able to try to do his job, a new employee is thrown out there without proper training in a very dangerous job and then put in the position to train others in jobs that he is not had time to become familiar with. Changes need to be made to keep this unecessary tragic accident from happening again. Cutting jobs and forcing new people to do jobs without good training cost us to lose a good man.....
Posted by: Roger on Oct 28, 2007 at 05:57 PM
My name is Roger Elkins and I worked in the same Dept. with Bill at West virginia American Water Co. for close to 23 years.I was so sorry to see him leave but I guess Bill needed to get out from all of the stress he was under. I was so happy for him getting on at the R/R and now I wish he was still here with us. I could never say anything but good things about Bill because I had made a very good friend in him and he was a funny and easy to get along with on and off the job. I will never understand why this happened but I know Bill is in Gods hands now and I will see him again some day. My prayers are with his family and I know all my fellow workers are sharing my same feelings that I am going through at this time.
Posted by: Anonymous on Oct 28, 2007 at 02:18 PM
For everyone who post comments on here, You need to start paying attention to your own lives. Yes, this is a tragedy but the railroad is a dangerous job for everyone who is employed. I have family who work at Russell and Raceland. Why is everyone just know complaining about how dangerous railroad life is? Yes, Everyone has there own opinions as to what happened the night he was killed but unless you were there or have a family member who was working in the yard when it happened then you have no right to talk about it. I know what happened that night, because I hear about every accident that happens. For those who have been stating that there was a derailment in the yard, why does that concern you. If there is a derailment in the yard, CSX employees do not have to report it to authorities. Also, if you do not like where you are living then move, the railroad has been here alot longer than you have and they will continue to be here and provide jobs in the future.
Posted by: Anonymous on Oct 28, 2007 at 01:26 PM
At the rate this rail yard is going they are going to kill the whole town. There needs to be changes made in the way that place operates. Between the chemical leaks and fatalities it seems to be horribly mismanaged.
Posted by: tim on Oct 28, 2007 at 01:25 PM
my prayers go out to his daughter-family.i hope-pray all this stuff at csx comes to end.im so afraid if not something else might happen.i do think safety need be worked on more down there.
Posted by: csx on Oct 28, 2007 at 01:07 AM
I worked with Bill and he was a great guy to work with. This is an ongoing problem with CSX Huntington/Russell Division. The Men in Charge (Gary Willams and Josh Clauss) are only concerned with numbers and not our safety. With Chemical leaks and now a fatality, when will they start to realize that you cannot operate if all your manpower is injured? For the last several months Clauss and shut down several jobs in the Russell yard but then calling extra jobs (temporary jobs) to get the job done in the yard. This creates more people in the yard on short rest (less than 6 hours rest between shifts), which causes accidents. The people in charge think that they can push the crews to do more and more and only be concerned about the saftey rules when it is adventagous to the supervisors. If this continues with Clauss and Williams in charge, it is only a matter of time before something catastrophic occurs in this area.
Posted by: jammie on Oct 28, 2007 at 12:02 AM
i heard about this from a nother man who worked there also. i feel bad for the man, but i am glad he got to speak to his family before he when the cars were pulled apart.
Posted by: csx employee on Oct 27, 2007 at 09:54 PM
i had a problem with your airing of this story. the story should not be about the citizens of raceland who were not affected by this accident, but they should be about the friends, family, and co-workers who lost a great man due to the neglect of a company who looks at there employees like they are just numbers, not human beings.
Posted by: sel on Oct 27, 2007 at 09:43 PM
bill was a good, honest, hard-working guy who always had a smile on his face. he had only been with csx since may, but knew the rules and procedures to keep everyone safe and to do his job. this is tragic.
Posted by: DeniseRaceland on Oct 27, 2007 at 07:21 PM
I am sorry for this family's loss!
Posted by: jeff on Oct 27, 2007 at 05:34 PM
Bill worsham was a kind man and good friend We are praying for his family
Posted by: co worker on Oct 27, 2007 at 02:25 PM
This is a sad situation Bill had been on the railroad a short time something like 5 months,he had a young daughter that he was raising by himself he was one of the most friendlyest person you would ever meet.I believe he lived around baroursville this is just too sad.
Posted by: Josie on Oct 27, 2007 at 01:42 PM
Sounds too me like CSX is being negligent. Maybe they need some heavy investigating
Posted by: J on Oct 27, 2007 at 11:12 AM
my husband works for the rail road. it seems like there is more and more goin wrong with the rail roads these days. i wish they could make it safer. i worry every time he goes out the door to go to work these days.
Posted by: citizen on Oct 27, 2007 at 10:48 AM
I am so sorry to hear of this tragedy. Seems like we hear more and more tradegies daily. I will be praying for the families, friends and workers of the victim. Please know that there are people calling out to God on your behalf.
Posted by: Anonymous on Oct 27, 2007 at 09:59 AM
It was bound to happen, sooner or later. Maybe now they will do more about safety in that dangerous place over there. My prayers are with this mans family.
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