A train carrying dangerous goods in the United States fell into a river, a bridge collapsed, and cargo | chemicals | collapsed
A bridge spanning the Yellowstone River in Stilwater County, Montana, USA collapsed on the 24th, causing multiple oil tank cars of a freight train carrying hazardous chemicals to crash into the river.
The Associated Press reported, citing the Steelwater County Emergency Relief Bureau, that three oil tank cars carrying hot asphalt and four tanks carrying molten sulfur fell into the water, with some cars leaking yellow material.
Montana Railroad spokesperson Andy Garland said in a statement that the train crew is safe and there have been no reports of casualties. Asphalt and sulfur will quickly solidify at lower temperatures.
The incident occurred in a sparsely populated area of the Yellowstone River Valley, surrounded by pastures and farmland, far from Yellowstone National Park. The relevant departments have closed the drinking water intake downstream of the river and conducted a risk assessment.
The water company has cut off the river water that flows downstream into irrigation channels to prevent chemicals from flowing into farmland. David Stami, the emergency affairs director of Steelwater County, said that the leaked hazardous chemicals were diluted by the surging river water.
Officials from nearby Huangshi County said that due to the "potential hazardous material leakage" accident, they have implemented emergency measures at the water treatment plant and demanded that residents save water.
Galan said in a statement, "We are committed to addressing any potential impacts of this incident on the region and working to understand the underlying causes of the accident."
The cause of the bridge collapse is currently under investigation. The recent rainstorm caused the river water level to rise sharply, but it is not clear whether this is one of the reasons for the incident.
In addition, local suppliers said that the collapse of the bridge also destroyed a fiber optic cable to provide Internet services for users in Montana, and the network connection would be closed or extremely slow.
Frequent derailment accidents of dangerous goods trains in the United States. In February of this year, a freight train from Norfolk Southern Company derailed while passing through East Palestine, Ohio, causing 50 carriages, including 5 carriages carrying hazardous materials such as vinyl chloride, to derail or be damaged. Emergency personnel carried out controlled release of vinyl chloride tankers. Train derailment and controlled release lead to a large amount of toxic chemicals entering the air, water, and soil, resulting in an environmental crisis.
According to data from the Federal Railroad Administration, there were over 1000 train derailments in the United States last year.