(The Associated Press circulated the following article on January 24.)
MERIDIAN, Miss. — Amtrak has resumed service through Meridian after the route was closed due to two unrelated freight train derailments last week in Alabama.
The first derailment occurred in Cuba, Ala., on Jan. 16. Two days later, a train crashed into another in a fiery wreck at Lincoln, Ala.
“We are happy to be back,” Amtrak spokesman Marc Magliari said on Monday. “A train from New Orleans rolled through Meridian at about noon and a train from New York left on January 22.”
Passengers can expect slightly slower travel times through Cuba, Magliari said.
“There has been a lot of congestion in that area due to remnants of the derailment, but we are still expected to continue operating,” he said.
The lines were already carrying increased traffic because of tracks that were destroyed by Hurricane Katrina in late August. Magliari said the traffic should decrease once some of the storm damaged tracks reopen next month.
The train that derailed at Cuba was traveling north on the Norfolk Southern line when it derailed about 12:30 p.m.
Three overturned cars were carrying grain, plastic pellets and two racks of Chevrolet trucks. No breaches or leaks occurred, though some of the trucks were damaged.
The train that crashed into another two days later at about 4:30 p.m. carried sodium cyanide, but none of the hazardous chemical was spilled into the environment, officials said.