(The following story by Shawna Morrison appeared on the Roanoke Times website on July 30.)
ROANOKE, Va. — Several cars of a coal train headed toward Norfolk derailed in Montgomery County on Tuesday night, a Norfolk Southern Corp. spokeswoman said.
The derailment happened about 10 p.m. next to Slate Branch Creek off Coal Hollow Road west of Christiansburg.
NS spokeswoman Susan Terpey said 22 cars on an eastbound train with two locomotives and 145 cars loaded with coal left the tracks but did not overturn.
The cause of the derailment is under investigation, she said.
No one was hurt and no hazardous materials were spilled, Terpey said. In addition, Montgomery County Sheriff’s Lt. Brian Wright said, no roads were blocked as a result of the incident.
Terpey said NS was working to get the 22 cars back on track Wednesday by picking them up with cranes and placing them back on the rails.
She said the plan was to finish rerailing the cars by midnight Wednesday and to get trains running through the area again by Friday.