Officials were in Stillwater County Sunday for an update on the Yellowstone River train derailment.
UPDATE:
Officials were in Stillwater County Sunday to get an update on the train that derailed in the Yellowstone River.
Gov. Greg Gianforte spoke at a news conference after a briefing, thanking those who responded to the incident.
“We were very lucky in what ended up in the river,” Gianforte said. “It could have been a lot worse, there was no loss of life and I’m encouraged that the preliminary water samples all came back negative.”
During the press conference, Joseph Racicot, president of Montana Rail Link, shared that the bridge was last inspected in May, with ultrasonic testing of the line conducted during the last two months of the incident.
While the rail is out, service is down on the south line and Racicot says they are working to route as much traffic as possible from Laurel to Great Falls through Shelby.
“This is going to be a long outage, I’m not sure of a time frame yet, we have to clean things up first before we can assess the damage to the bridge,” Racicot said.
UPDATE, JUNE 25:
On Sunday morning, Montana Rail Link (MRL) gave an update on the train derailment near Reed Point, saying work and repairs to the site began Saturday evening.
Crews are working to transfer the sodium hydrosulphide car closer to the river, MRL added that the car is safely out of the water and there has been no release of the material.
MRL say they believe it is unlikely that molten sulfur and asphalt will move downstream.
Active water quality sampling will continue throughout the incident.
You can read the full MRL statement below:
“Work and site repairs began on Saturday evening and are continuing. Repairs have been made to the access roads to begin cleaning the affected cars. The sodium hydrosulphide car transfer closest to the river is in departs this morning. The car remains out of the water and there has been no release of this material. We continue to closely monitor all emissions involving molten sulfur and asphalt and mitigate any impacts to the site and the surrounding area. Both substances are “harden and solidify rapidly when interacting with water and modeling suggests significant downstream movement of the material is unlikely. Active water quality sampling began yesterday and will continue throughout the incident. We continue working closely with MT DEQ, EPA and other local, state and federal partners in our cleanup, removal and restoration efforts as a unified command Montana Rail Link remains committed to addressing any potential impacts to the area as a result of this incident “.
UPDATE:
Montana Rail Link (MRL) offers more information about a train derailment near Reed Point on Saturday.
An initial assessment indicates the compromised railcars contained molten sulfur and asphalt, which solidify quickly when exposed to colder temperatures, according to MRL.
Two cars carrying sodium hydrosulfate are also included in the mix, but neither has entered the water and an initial air quality assessment has confirmed no release events associated with these two cars
“The current focus of operations is to safely respond to the emergency, control all emissions and mitigate impacts. Throughout the response, MRL will work with local, state and federal partners to assess impacts on natural resources and develop adequate cleanup, disposal and restoration efforts,” MRL said.
The Railroad Division of the International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers also shared the following statement about the derailment:
The International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers (IAM) Railway Division is grateful that no injuries were reported following today’s train derailment at the Montana Bridge. We salute the first responders who quickly responded to the incident.
IAM’s rail division remains committed to highlighting safety issues and hazards in today’s rail industry. That’s why our union continues to urge Congress to pass the bipartisan Railroad Safety Act, a common-sense piece of legislation that will create several essential safety improvements on the nation’s railroads. This bipartisan legislation will make the rail industry safer for workers and the communities in which they work.
At the site of the investigation will be representatives of the Confraria de Ferrocarrils del Carmen of the Railway Division of the IAM. We will follow the investigation by Montana Rail Link and other authorities into the cause of this derailment and hope that steps are taken to prevent similar incidents in the future.
REED POINT, Mt. – A train derailed on the bridge that crosses the Yellowstone River in Stillwater County Saturday morning.
In a statement, Montana Rail Link (MRL) said there were no injuries in connection with the derailment.
MRL also reported that there are several cars in the Yellowstone River, and that the composition includes several hazardous material cars.
Columbus Fire Chief Rich Cowger tells us seven or eight cars were involved and some cars contained molten asphalt and sulfur. There is no oil involved in the derailment.
Twin Bridge Rd. in Reed Point has been closed by the Department of Transportation due to the derailment.
Water treatment facilities in the area initially shut down water treatment and the City of Laurel has since restarted its treatment plant.
Billings Public Works Director Debi Meling said her first concern was what was in the river, but a mock-up of the river found the material in the river won’t reach Billings until 8:30 p.m. at 21:00 on Saturday night.
When potential pollutants reach the Magic City, Meling says the city’s reservoirs are full, so it’s possible to shut down Billings for a couple of hours without interruption.
Due to the derailment, portions of the Yellowstone and Stillwater rivers are closed at the request of Stillwater County officials.
The Montana Department of Transportation is telling people not to pull over on I-90 around mile marker 398.
Gov. Greg Gianforte said he is monitoring the situation and the state is waiting for support. Senator Jon Tester is also in contact with local, state and federal officials about the derailment.
This derailment is the fifth in the state in 2023 alone.
The following river closure information is from Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks:
The Stillwater River is closed from the Jefferies Landing fishing access to the confluence with the Yellowstone River. If boaters see this alert while on the river below the Jefferies Landing fishing access, the last exit is the Fireman’s Point fishing access.
The Yellowstone River is closed from Pelican Fishing Access to Buffalo Mirage Fishing Access to boaters and floaters. This includes the fishing access sites of Braaten and Indian Fort.
From Indian Point to Buffalo Mirage, people are being told to avoid the water because of possible contact with contaminants.
Stillwater River fishing access sites upstream of the Whitebird fishing access site remain open.
Fishing access sites downstream from the Whitebird Fishing Access Site to the confluence of the Yellowstone River are closed to boating and floating.
You can read Montana Rail Link’s full statement below:
“This morning at approximately 6:45am MDT, part of a westbound train near Reed Point derailed while crossing a bridge over Yellowstone. The train crew is safe and uninjured reported injuries. There are several cars in the river. and the consistent makeup included several hazmat cars. The cause of the derailment is currently under investigation with MRL personnel and first responders on site. DES has been notified and NRC. The safety of our employees and the public remains our top priority. We are committed to addressing any potential impact to the area as a result of this incident and working to understand the reasons for the accident.”
