...the report states. The authors cautioned they need more data for a thorough analysis of the risk posed by the fuel. Ernie Piper, railroad vice president for safety, hailed the report as a sign the spill posed low environmental risk. ''The...

...costly Gold Creek cleanup. ''No matter what you spend on safety, it's cheaper than $9.3 million,'' said Ernie Piper, whose job is making sure the state-owned railroad's trains operate safely. The $9.3 million is roughly what...

...employees and the general public. Before the mandate, employees sometimes smoked in the locomotive or caboose, said Ernie Piper, the railroad's vice president of health and safety. Passengers were allowed to smoke in vestibules on the trains...