A bridge collapse in Columbus, Montana caused a train derailment on the Yellowstone River on Saturday.
The bridge gave way overnight Friday, but the train did not attempt to cross until 6:00 a.m. Saturday. As a result, the Yellowstone County Sheriff’s Office stated that “several tankers were damaged and are currently leaking petroleum products near the Yellowstone River.”
In a Facebook post, the sheriff’s office reassured the public, stating, “There is no immediate threat to Yellowstone County.” However, they announced the closure of local fishing accesses.
The derailment involved eight train cars. In response to the incident, Yellowstone County’s General Emergency and Emergency Services issued an advisory to residents, urging them to conserve water.
Due to the derailment, some sections of the river have been cut off. Stillwater County Emergency Services, Sheriff’s Office, Commissioners, Columbus Fire & Rescue, along with Montana Rail Link and other entities are currently on scene investigating the cause of the bridge collapse . Governor Greg Gianforte (R-MT) confirmed that he is closely monitoring the situation.
“On 06/24/2023 at approximately 07:45, water treatment facilities in Laurel, Billings and Lockwood, as well as irrigation canal companies, instituted emergency protective measures, including the closing the gates, due to a possible hazardous material spill. into the Yellowstone River in neighboring Stillwater County,” a press release read.
RawAlerts provided video coverage of the scene.
🚨#BREAKING: Train derails into Yellowstone River after bridge collapses, sparking fears of dangerous spill
📌#Laurel | #Montana
A major emergency response is currently underway after a freight train plunged into the Yellowstone River near Laurel, Montana. The train was crossing…pic.twitter.com/4VWyC2lLOY
— RAWSALERTS (@rawsalerts) June 24, 2023
“There is currently a major emergency response after a freight train plunged into the Yellowstone River near Laurel, Montana. The train was crossing a bridge over the river when it collapsed, causing 8 cars to plunge into the water below,” the news release said. “There is concern that hazardous materials could seep into the river, so officials are asking residents who live near the river to reduce their water use immediately.”
It is the latest in a series of train derailments. A Norfolk Southern train derailed on Feb. 3, prompting the evacuation of nearly 2,000 residents so that a controlled burn could take place on Feb. 6, which released dangerous chemicals, including chlorine vinyl, in the community.
The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) released more than a thousand documents on Friday that provided new insights into the rationale behind the decision to burn toxic chemicals as part of the emergency response to the train derailment in East Palestine
Among the 38 derailed trains, five of them contained a staggering amount of more than 115,000 tons of vinyl chloride, a chemical known to cause cancer. After the explosion, officials faced the critical decision of whether to allow the fire to burn naturally or initiate a controlled “vent and burn” operation to prevent a more catastrophic explosion.
“I was a little blindsided,” East Palestine Fire Chief Keith A. Drabick said of the decision to burn the five railcars containing the chemical. “I had 13 minutes to make a decision on whether or not we were going to vent or burn because they were running out of daylight.”
Despite assurances from state and federal officials that no hazardous chemicals were detected, area residents have reported experiencing headaches, dizziness and nausea around the time of the accident.
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