Sam Gibbons: “today we will be deciding whether to ship high-level nuclear waste, one of the most dangerous and deadly substances…”

“today we will be deciding whether to ship high-level nuclear waste, one of the most dangerous and deadly substances known to man, across this great country by and through our roads and neighborhoods and schools and parkways. Mr. Speaker, today we must reject this dangerous plan. Whatever Members believe, let us look at some of the startling facts. According to the Department of Transportation itself, there have been over 11,000 train accidents in the past 5 years. It is estimated that at least one train accident occurs every 24 hours. Since 1998, 3,800 people have lost their lives and more than 45,000 people have been injured in train accidents in the United States alone. Just imagine how many more people would die or could have been injured had these trains been carrying high-level nuclear waste to Yucca Mountain. Mr. Speaker, it takes only one antitank missile or one terrorist act to cause a catastrophic nuclear disaster, but today we can prevent that disaster. We can oppose House Joint Resolution 87 and stop the Yucca Mountain project now before we endanger the lives of thousands of innocent Americans.”