Freight train hauling crude oil derails in Illinois

GALENA, Ill. (AP) — A BNSF Railway freight train loaded with crude oil derailed Thursday near the northern Illinois city of Galena and erupted into flames, authorities said.

The train derailed around 1:20 p.m. in a rural area where the Galena River meets the Mississippi, said Jo Daviess County Sheriff’s Sgt. Mike Moser. The blaze hasn’t prompted any evacuations.

Galena City Administrator Mark Moran said city fire crews responded to the derailment 3 miles south of the city.

“The report that came back to me from them is that eight tanker cars had left the track,” Moran told the Dubuque Telegraph Herald. “Two of those were still upright. The other six were not.”

The train had 103 cars loaded with crude oil, along with two buffer cars loaded with sand.

Firefighters could only access the derailment site by a bike path, said Assistant Fire Chief Bob Conley. They attempted to fight a small fire at the scene but were unable to stop the flames.

Firefighters had to pull back for safety reasons and were allowing the fire to burn itself out, Conley said. In addition to Galena firefighters, emergency and hazardous material responders from Iowa and Wisconsin were at the scene.

The cause of the derailment hasn’t been determined, said BNSF spokesman Michael Trevino, adding railroad employees are on the scene and additional personnel were headed to the scene and would work with local responders.

The train’s destination wasn’t immediately known.