Second train derailment occurs in county

For the second time in two days, a Union Pacific train has derailed in St. Francois County.

According to Sheriff Dan Bullock, the incident occurred at 10:07 a.m. Friday and involved a railcar carrying ammonium nitrate on a track running parallel with Old Bonne Terre Road between Desloge and Bonne Terre. He said no spillage took place.

Ammonium nitrate is a white crystalline solid which is highly soluble in water. It is predominantly used in agriculture as a high-nitrogen fertilizer.

Workers with R.J. Corman Derailment Services, LLC were still on the scene late Friday afternoon after a crane was brought in to place the car back on the tracks. Traffic was restricted to one lane on Old Bonne Terre Road as company vehicles and equipment took up half the roadway.

A similar accident happened Thursday afternoon when a section of Taylor Avenue stretching between Parkway Drive and Highway 8 in Park Hills had to be closed for a short period of time when a UP rail car went off the railroad spur that leads to the Piramal Glass facility. The train was delivering material to the company at the time. Again, no spillage took place.

A call to UP requesting information regarding the cause of Friday’s derailment was not returned by press time. 

To see more photos, visit dailyjournalonline.com/gallery” width=”800″ /> For the second time in two days a Union Pacific train derailed Friday morning in St. Francois County. Late in the afternoon workers with R.J. Corman Derailment Services, LLC were putting a crane in place to put the car back on the tracks. As of press time, UP had not released a cause for the accident.

To see more photos, visit dailyjournalonline.com/gallery

Kevin Jenkins is a reporter for the Daily Journal and can be reached at 573-518-3614 or kjenkins@dailyjournalonline.com