Tracks Reopen After Derailment

The Union Pacific railroad tracks are open for business again following a weekend train derailment here.

The northbound train derailed at about 9 p.m. Friday, wrecking 13 cars and ripping up nearly 600 feet of track, according to railroad spokesman Mike Furtney.

Most of the cars were empty, but four contained wheat, lumber and canola pellets.

The cause of the derailment was a broken rail, but what caused the rail to break is still under investigation, Furtney said.

“It could have been metal fatigue,” he said. Furtney said the tracks are regularly inspected by pickups that ride the rails.

Although none of the cars, which piled on top of each other, carried hazardous materials, “every derailment is a serious one, as far as we’re concerned,” Furtney said.

Damages are estimated to be $408,000.

When the derailment occurred, some cars struck the bridge abutments of the U.S. Highway 95 overpass. Police officers closed the highway for about three hours to confirm that no hazardous materials were involved in the derailment and that the bridge was safe for traffic.

The tracks were reopened early Sunday.