(The following story by Richard Peterson appeared on The Great Falls Tribune website on September 27, 2009.)
WOLF POINT, Mont. — More than 40 crewmembers worked through the night in hopes of reopening a rail line today after 13 cars from a BNSF Railway Co. train derailed east of Wolf Point Saturday.
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Twelve of the cars were empty but one of the three tankers was carrying metam sodium, a corrosive liquid and pesticide, said BNSF spokesman Gus Melonas. The car was not punctured or leaking, and it should not pose an environmental hazard, he said.
The cars derailed in a remote area between Wolf Point and Poplar with the nearest home about a mile away. Several cars were lying sideways and some were twisted or upright.
Responders were on the scene and closed a secondary road near the tracks; the Wolf Point Fire Department was on standby.
About nine miles east of Wolf Point near the Macon crossing, the Minneapolis bound train was pulling off a sidetrack and onto the main line at 31 mph when the derailment occurred, Melonas said. The train originated in Pasco, Wash., and is one of 40 trains that use that line every day, including the Seattle-Chicago Empire Builder.
The Amtrak Web site reported that service along Montana’s Hi-Line would be disrupted through today.
Saturday’s accident occurred at 12:20 p.m. and no cause has yet been found, Melonas said. Crews and equipment from Havre, Billings, Glasgow and Williston N.D. were on the scene Saturday evening, and rail traffic in the state has been rerouted.
“Our plan is to re-rail three of the cars and shove the remaining 10 off to the side and remove them over the next three weeks, Melonas said. No injuries were reported.