(The Florence, Ala., Times Daily posted the following story by Bernie Delinski on its website on July 9.)
FLORENCE, Ala. — A Norfolk Southern crew was working into the night Tuesday to clear a seven-car derailment about 100 yards past the Sixth Street railroad intersection.
Nobody was injured and the only leak was about 30-50 gallons of diesel fuel, Colbert County Emergency Management Agency spokesman Gary Cosby said. “That can easily be contained.”
The train was hauling coal, he said.
The seven derailed cars included the six rear cars and the rear engine, said Norfolk Southern spokeswoman Susan Terpay.
She said the cause is unknown, and Norfolk Southern officials are investigating. In addition, an environmental contractor was called to the scene because of the diesel fuel.
“Whenever we have a spill, even if it’s just two drops of fuel, we bring in an environmental contractor to make sure we get it up and replace the soil,” Terpay said.
Terpay said Norfolk Southern officials are unsure how long it will take to restore train service. Crews were hoping Tuesday evening to have service running by this morning.
“There were no injuries, no evacuations and there is no threat to the people in the area,” EMA Director Mike Melton said. “We were fortunate.”
The derailment happened at 11:27 a.m., Cosby said. Traffic was blocked off at the Broadway Avenue intersection east of the wreck and George Wallace Boulevard intersection west of the scene.
He said about a half-inch fuel line was broken during the accident, but David Cole and David Pate from Colbert’s Hazardous Materials Team found the source of the leak and quickly stopped it.
An engine tank can hold up to 4,000 gallons of fuel, but it was unknown how much was in the tank, Cosby said.
A rear “helper engine” is used on heavy trains, Terpay said. She said the train had 125 loads totaling 17,529 tons.
Norfolk Southern officials cleared other crossings by using the lead locomotive to pull working cars into the Sheffield rail yard, Terpay said.
Within about an hour after the wreck, railroad officials had brought in equipment that can lift cars back onto the track. Terpay said cars that can be rerailed will be taken to the rail yard. Those that cannot be used will be moved far enough from the scene to clear the rail line.
Officials also are inspecting the track, which was damaged during the accident.
Cosby said it appears the southbound train began derailing about 50 yards north of the Sixth Street intersection.
Evidence of the crash was obvious, beginning around that point. The track was crushed onto its side. It remained flattened and on its side all the way to the derailment location.
Wooden sections that run alongside the steel rails were churned and charred like used firewood. The part of the street that adjoins the tracks was ripped.
The rear engine and six derailed cars were on their right side alongside the western part of the tracks.
Muscle Shoals Police Chief Robert Evans shuddered at the thought of what could have happened if the train had left the tracks and come onto Sixth Street. “Lucky,” he said, while looking at the track. “Very lucky.”
Evans pointed to a white railroad-crossing symbol that is painted on the road. He said that is where motorists are supposed to stop while trains pass, but many drivers pull up much closer, which is dangerous.
The intersection is close to a neighborhood, and several neighbors gathered in Avery Michael’s back yard to view the damage. The tracks run alongside Michael’s home. EMA officials had set up a command center tent in the yard.
Michael said he was in his recliner, watching television with his wife and two grandsons when the accident happened. He said he has lived at the house 52 years, and this is the first derailment.
“I’ve never heard such a racket in all my life,” Michael said. “One grandson thought it was a tornado. Another thought it was an earthquake.”
Michael said he looked outside to see what was happening.
“I could see it kicking up dust,” he said. “My wife jumped up and said a train had wrecked.”
Michael still feels safe living alongside the tracks. “I’m just thankful there weren’t any chemicals on that thing, and I didn’t have to evacuate.”
As he sat in his back yard, watching the huge cleanup machines climb onto the tracks, Michael pointed to his camper. “I told them I was going to hook to my camper tomorrow and get out of town,” he said. “There’s too much work going on.”
He jokes that he had told EMA officials that, if they would wait a few minutes before putting up a tent, he would cut the grass in that spot for them. “I also told them I don’t care how long they stay, but I don’t want to have to pick up any cigarette butts in the morning.”
Another neighbor, R.L. Risner Jr., felt his house vibrate as the train passed. He looked outside and could tell it was derailing when the last cars went by.
“The first thing I thought was, ‘Are there any chemicals on the train?’ ” he said.
As he recalled the incident, Risner moved under the shade tree where Michael and others sat. Nearby, someone was filling a small swimming pool with water for Michael’s grandchildren.
“I’m just glad the train didn’t fall this way,” Risner said.