(The following story by Max R. Mitchell appeared on the Watertown Daily Times website on April 28, 2009.)
MADRID, N.Y. — Four freight cars carrying salt derailed about 3 p.m. Friday, about a mile off Buck Road on the New York and Ogdensburg Railway line.
Jerome M. Hebda, vice president of Vermont Rail, which operates the line, said there were no injuries, but there was moderate damage to the cars and track.
Although the cars were carrying 400 tons of salt from the CSX Interchange in Norwood to the Port of Ogdensburg, no salt spilled from the cars, Mr. Hebda said.
The cars will be rerailed and the line, which cracked in several places, should be back in use by Wednesday, Mr. Hebda said.
He estimated the repairs will cost $50,000 to $65,000, which will be paid for by the New York and Ogdensburg Railway.
He said the accident was caused by “sun-kinks,” which are buckles in the rail from temperature changes.
“The engine and the first couple cars got over it, then the track structure collapsed and the four cars, all in a row, derailed,” Mr. Hebda said.
The cars remain on the railway’s right-of-way, he said.
The New York and Ogdensburg Railway is responsible for general maintenance of the track, while the Ogdensburg Bridge and Port Authority, which owns the rail and leases it to the shipping company, is responsible for raising money for major maintenance projects, according to OBPA Executive Director Wade A. Davis.
In October, the OBPA submitted a grant application for $2.7 million from the state Department of Transportation to upgrade about 14 miles of track, including the replacement of nine miles of rail from Norwood to Ogdensburg.
“We await DOT’s decision on the application for funding the rehabilitation and repair for the Norwood to Ogdensburg portion of the line,” Mr. Davis said.