A half-dozen cars from a Union Pacific freight train derailed about 4:30 this morning in the Wright County community of Eagle Grove.
Calli Hite, spokeswoman for the Omaha-based railroad, says the cause of the derailment is still unclear.
“We’re investigating to really understand what happened there,” Hite says. “We had six cars that derailed, a couple are on their side and a couple are still upright. There were no injuries to the crew or to the public, so we’re focused on cleaning up the derailment and figuring out what happened.
Eagle Grove police and fire departments are on the scene along with a hazmat team from Fort Dodge. Hite says the track should reopen soon. “The expectation is to have normal operations resumed in the area by this afternoon,” she says. “Occasionally, cleanup takes a bit longer, but we can clear the track and start moving trains through the area while we clean up any commodity or anything that is occuring outside of the railroad line.”
The cars that derailed were oil tankers. They were reportedly empty and there are no reports of anything spilled.
By Pat Powers, KQWC, Webster City