Authorities reported that a freight train hauling hazardous chemicals derailed and caught fire Saturday morning close to Rockwood, Maine. According to train officials and state authorities, none of the hazardous chemicals aboard, however, caught fire.
Train Carrying Hazardous Chemicals Derailed In Maine , Three Rail Workers Injured. (Photo: NewsNation)
According to a statement given to CBS News by a representative of Canadian Pacific Kansas City Limited (CPKC), the train derailed at 8:30 in the morning. a “track washout” in a remote wooded location about 15 miles east of the town of Jackman caused the delay in Eastern time. After a very strong downpour, a “track washout” frequently occurs, washing away the ballast and road beneath the track.
According to a news release from the Maine Forest Service (MFS), a “build-up of melting ice and debris” may have been the cause of the washout.
Three rail workers were brought to a hospital with non-life-threatening injuries after the derailment caused a small forest fire that was “contained,” according to MFS.
On its Facebook page, Rockwood Fire & Rescue published a picture of the derailment on Saturday and cautioned locals to “stay clear!”
There were “no evacuations and no threats to the public safety,” according to the CPKC spokesperson.
Following a briefing on the event, Maine Governor Janet Mills tweeted that “officials on site indicate that there is no threat to public health or safety.”
According to MFS, the derailment caused a small forest fire that was “contained,” and three train workers were brought to a hospital with non-life-threatening wounds.
Rockwood Fire & Rescue published a picture of the derailment on its Facebook page on Saturday and warned locals to “stay clear!”
According to the CPKC spokesperson, “no evacuations and no threat to public safety” existed.
The governor of Maine, Janet Mills, tweeted that she had been informed of the event and that “officials on site indicate that there is no threat to public health or safety.”
According to representatives from both organizations, no trains carrying hazardous items derailed, but three locomotives and six rail cars carrying electrical wiring and lumber did. It was not immediately clear what kind of dangerous items were being transported by the train.
“We are coordinating with local first responders who are on the scene,” CPKC said. “Our emergency response teams and hazardous materials specialists have responded and are still fully evaluating the situation,” the statement reads.
In a largely rural location, Rockwood is located in the state’s north-central region. One of the state’s biggest freshwater lakes, Moosehead Lake, is close by.
The derailment is the most recent incident to trouble the rail sector. Following recent flaming accidents involving dangerous chemicals in Ohio and Minnesota that forced evacuations, federal regulators and members of Congress are pressing railroads to take additional precautions to avoid derailments.
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