BROWNSVILLE, Texas — The wheels of a train temporarily slipped off the railroad track and ripped into the pavement as the train passed in front of the Cameron County Courthouse in Brownsville on Wednesday, the Brownsville Herald reported.
Railroad tracks run down the middle of East Harrison Street and trains at times tie up traffic around the courthouse.
“The street gave way,” Brownsville Police Lt. Oscar Maldonado said, adding recent rains might have softened the concrete. He said Brownsville & Rio Grande International Railroad was responsible for maintaining the tracks and no trains would be allowed to pass through until the surface was repaired.
Witnesses said they heard a loud boom as the train skidded through the concrete, tearing up the pavement alongside the track around 1:30 p.m. The train did not stop, and about 40 cars went through the concrete, they said.
“We were scared the train was going to tip over,” said Miguel Gallegos, who saw the incident. Gallegos and Lupe Olvera, who owns a building directly in front of the railroad tracks, said the railroad cars appeared to be tilting to one left side. Olvera, who said he has seen several trains derail in the vicinity recently, said he worried about the possible derailment of a train carrying hazardous materials.
“What happens if the train was filled with liquid gas?” he asked. “This is a real bad deal waiting around the corner to happen.”
The police department’s emergency management coordinator responded to the incident, although the rail cars apparently were not affected.
Police said they did not know what type of cargo the train was transporting. The street was closed Wednesday evening for repairs.