Freight Train Derails, Sparks Fire in Pennsylvania

A freight train on a CSX Corp line derailed in southern Pennsylvania on Wednesday, the company said, and local authorities said a freight car struck a garage which caught fire and they ordered the evacuation of nearby residents.

 

No injuries were reported after the derailment in Hyndman, about 100 miles southeast of Pittsburgh. The company said trains and shipments would be delayed between Connellsville, Pennsylvania, and Cumberland, Maryland.

 

Harry Corley, an emergency management coordinator for Bedford County, said six cars derailed, crashing into a local garage that caught fire, and was still burning.

 

Corley said he did not know what the train was carrying. A U.S. government agency later said the train was hauling propane tanks.

 

He said authorities ordered the evacuation of residents in a one-mile radius of the crash.

 

"Customers with freight traveling across these lines should expect service disruptions for one week as recovery crews are working to fully restore service through the area and making any infrastructure or equipment repairs that may be necessary, the company said on its website.

 

The National Transportation Safety Board said it was sending a team of six to investigate the CSX train derailment, propane tank car fire, in Hyndman, Pennsylvania.


(Reporting by Eric M. Johnson in Seattle; Editing by David Gregorio)