(The following report appeared on the Daily Press website on March 19.)
SUFFOLK, Va. — A Norfolk Southern freight train derailed in Suffolk early this morning, but there were no injuries and no hazardous materials spilled.
The eastbound train derailed around 2:10 a.m. near the intersection of Wellons and Lake Kilby roads. A police spokeswoman said the wreck was far enough from the streets that it should not have an impact on morning traffic.
Norfolk Southern spokesman Robin Chapman said more than three dozen of the train’s 148 cars went off the tracks, spilling coal across the ground but putting nothing into any nearby water.
He said investigators were working to determine what caused the derailment.
Chapman said the derailment occurred on “one of our busiest tracks, our mainline to the west.” He said Norfolk Southern has about 20 cars per day on those tracks, but the derailment is currently preventing any trains from passing in either direction. A Norfolk Southern crew was working on the wreck this morning trying to clear the tracks, but there was no early estimate on how long it would take.