(The following article by Kris Abbey was posted on the Amarillo Globe-News website on February 11.)
GUYMON, Okla. — Firefighters, law officers and railroad employees had a major mess on their hands after a train derailment early Tuesday.
A Union Pacific train struck a tractor-trailer at a railroad crossing near U.S. Highway 54 about two miles east of Guymon, said Lt. Marvin Noyes of the Oklahoma Highway Patrol.
Three engines and 16 rail cars derailed after the collision, which occurred about 8:20 a.m., said Mark Davis, a Union Pacific Railroad spokesman. The 80-car train was carrying about 190 new trucks.
The truck driver was not injured, Noyes said. The train’s engineer and conductor went to a local hospital for treatment and later were released, Davis said.
Officials did not release the names of the driver or railroad employees involved in the collision.
Noyes said the driver of the tractor-trailer apparently tried to beat the train. It struck the trailer portion of the rig, which was loaded with heavy equipment. The crossing is marked with warning signals but no cross arm, he said.
After the derailment, diesel fuel from the engines ignited and the fire spread to some of the rail cars, Noyes said. At least five fire departments helped fight the stubborn blaze. Firefighters shuttled water in tankers until running a water line from the nearby Seaboard Farms hog-raising facility.
“It’s real difficult to put out diesel (fire),” Noyes said. “It’s taking a lot of water.”
Highway 54 remained closed late Tuesday and Union Pacific crews and contractors were expected to be on scene all night, putting in new tracks and moving damaged rail cars. Davis said the railroad hoped to reopen the tracks early today. The entire cleanup could take days, Noyes said.
Davis said the railroad will work with local authorities to investigate the cause of the collision. He said the driver of the truck could, under certain circumstances, be held liable for the damage.
“That’s what the investigation will bring out,” Davis said.
The railroad will offer counseling to the engineer and conductor on the train to help them cope with the trauma of being in a crossing collision, Davis said.
“For a train-crew member, it is one of the most helpless feelings,” he said. “When you lose sight of a vehicle and you’re just waiting for a hit, it’s just like in slow motion. It’s very, very traumatic.”