| Train Derails in Vermont, Spilling Gas Tuesday October 23, 2007 2:31 AM MIDDLEBURY, Vt. (AP) - A freight train derailed in this college town Monday, spilling gasoline into a creek, sparking a brief fire and forcing evacuations because of fumes. Between 10 and 15 cars derailed just before 2 p.m., some coming to rest on their sides, according to Tom Scanlon, a spokesman for the Town of Middlebury. Some were carrying fuel oil, others gasoline, he said. No injuries were reported. Crews worked to transfer the gasoline, leaking into Otter Creek, from the overturned cars into trucks for removal. The operation was expected to last through the night. ``The No. 1 concern is, obviously, the migration of any gasoline going downstream in the creek,‘’ said George Crombie, secretary of the Agency of Natural Resources. He didn’t know how much gasoline got into the river. Booms were deployed to prevent it from spreading, he said. A fire that broke out on one of the cars was quickly extinguished, but the smell of gasoline led to the evacuation of nearby homes and businesses. The cause of the accident was being investigated. At Middlebury College, the 2,350-student body was on mid-term break. The remaining people in dormitories and a number of offices were evacuated as a precaution, spokeswoman Blair Kloman said. |
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What railroad did the train belong to?
Must be VRS? Vermont Rail System? http://www.vermontrailway.com/
Here’s a Google a Earth pic of Middlebury…looks like the rails run through the river already!!
Railways depicted by the black line.
Enjoy,
Roland