AMITE, La. — A broken rail caused the Oct. 12 freight train derailment that forced hundreds of Tangipahoa Parish residents from their homes for up to three days, a Canadian National Railway official confirmed Wednesday.
According to the Baton Rogue Advocate, a report submitted by railroad officials to the Federal Railroad Administration says rail cars leaked 15,000 gallons of hydrochloric acid and 14,000 gallons of styrene as a result of the derailment on the outskirts of Amite.
The spilled chemicals were contained in separate pools, according to State Police, who said the situation would have been much more dangerous had the chemicals been allowed to mix. The derailment involved the 19th through the 41st cars of the train, the report states.
The train consisted of 116 cars, official Ian Thompson of Canadian National Railway said.
The railroad’s report states that 600 people were ordered to leave their homes as a result of the derailment. The Tangipahoa Parish Sheriff’s Office reported 40 businesses and 794 homes in the evacuation zone.
Streets around the site remained blockaded for three days while leaks were stopped and hazardous chemicals transferred. State Police estimated that 250 to 300 workers were involved in the cleanup.
Reached at his office in Chicago, railroad spokesman Jack Burke said Wednesday that crews visually inspect Canadian National’s rails twice a week.
Once a year, the rails are checked by an ultrasound device, he said.
The steel rails that support trains are put under a lot of stress and a problem that may occur during manufacture can gradually worsen until a rail breaks, Burke said.
Burke said he had no specific details about the broken rail that caused the Amite derailment.
The incident report indicates the derailment did more than $750,000 in equipment damage and $83,000 in track and structure damage.
The report does not specify the cost of the cleanup.
It also does not mention legal or liability costs.
Several hundred people have filed lawsuits against the railroad.
Those suits, originally filed in 21st Judicial District Court, have since been moved to U.S. District Court in New Orleans, although plaintiffs have petitioned to have the matter moved back to state court.
In addition to the evacuation orders, the derailment caused rerouting of traffic and closure of several schools.
Nobody was reported seriously injured as a result of the derailment of the train, which began its northward journey in Geismar.
Officials said, however, that a number of people sought medical attention for upper respiratory complaints after the chemicals spilled.