Tribal leaders, elected officials, and community members will gather on Saturday, June 3, 2017, at 12:00 pm, at the Mosier Community School to mark the one year anniversary of the dangerous oil train disaster in the small town of Mosier in the Columbia River Gorge, near Hood River. They will demand a thorough cleanup of Mosier and stand up for communities calling for an end to reckless oil trains.
“The Stand Up To Oil campaign calls on elected officials across the Pacific Northwest to remember what happened in Mosier last year. In particular, we urge Governor Inslee to deny the Tesoro-Savage project – the largest oil train terminal proposed in North America. We must put the safety our communities first and not allow these unsafe oil trains to travel unchecked across the Northwest,” said Rebecca Ponzio, Director of the Stand Up To Oil campaign.
In the coming months, Washington Governor Inslee will make a final decision about whether to deny the Tesoro Savage oil train terminal in Vancouver, WA. This project that would bring up to five loaded oil trains each day through the Columbia River Gorge. Mosier’s experience should be all the evidence that Governor Inslee needs to deny the oil train terminal. Saturday’s rally will gather concerned citizens to send a clear message of support for Mosier, cities like Vancouver, Spokane, and Portland, and tribal nations who are standing up to oil corporations.
To view a live video stream of the speaker portion of the event tune into Facebook with live-tweeting via @GorgeFriends #mosier.
WHAT: Rally and community gathering one year after Mosier oil train disaster.
WHO: (Public rally speakers will include):
- JoDe Goudy, Chairman, Yakama Nation Tribal Council
- Carina Miller, Tribal Council member, Confederated Tribes of the Warm Springs
- Cathy Sampson-Kruse, Walla Walla Tribal Elder, member of the Confederated Tribes of the Umatilla Indian Reservation
- Dr. Maria McCormick, Mosier Physician
- Acasia Berry, Mosier resident
- Jacob Vallie, 8th grader, former Mosier Community School student
- Paul Blackburn, Hood River Mayor
- Alishia Topper, Vancouver City Council Member
- Ryan Mello, Tacoma City Council Member
- Rev. John Boonstra, Columbia Gorge Climate Action Network
WHEN: 12:00 p.m., on Saturday, June 3, 2017. The gathered crowd will hear from speakers starting at 12:00 p.m., followed by a community walk to the Columbia River.
WHERE: Mosier Community School, located at 1204 Historic Columbia River Highway (US-30 E), Mosier, Oregon.
VISUALS: Large crowd holding colorful banners and signs, followed by a march down to the river. (Archives: Library of photos from the 2016 accident.)
Background | read more here
On June 3, 2016, all eyes in the region turned to the town of Mosier, Oregon, as firefighters battled for 14 hours to contain a dangerous oil fire from a derailed Union Pacific train carrying highly flammable Bakken crude oil. Students at the Mosier Community School and some residents were evacuated from danger, oil spread in a sheen on the Columbia River, and the community of Mosier lost sewer and water service for days due to contamination risk. Once the fire was out, tribal leaders, elected officials, and local community members gathered at the site to call for an end to oil train traffic through the Columbia River Gorge.
One year later, Mosier’s groundwater is still contaminated, and oil and railroad companies are seeking to expand oil and coal train traffic through the Columbia River Gorge, a National Scenic Area, despite opposition from Columbia River treaty tribes, the town of Mosier, and many larger cities along the potential route.