(The following story appeared on the MetroNews website on October 8, 2010.)
CHAPMANVILLE, W.V. — A train which derailed in Logan County Friday morning had only left its loading point a few minutes before the accident. A CSX spokesman says the train originated in Russell, Kentucky and was loaded at Peach Creek, West Virginia only a few miles from Chapmanville where it derailed. The train was hauling its load to Bill Creek, West Virginia.
The crash caused 21 of the 90 cars in the train to jump the tracks just north of Chapmanville and spilled coal across Route 10, closing the area’s main highway for the day.
“We understand the inconvenience it’s caused to folks in that area,” said Carla Groleau, with CSX Corporate Communications in Jacksonville, Florida. “Our goal today is to get those trucks out there to take away that coal and have Route 10 opened up and back to business as soon as possible.”
Groleau says they don’t know a cause for the derailment at this time. An internal investigation team is in the area and looking at all of the evidence. She says the process of determining a cause could take a week to a month. Groleau says their main priority is reopening Route 10.