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Bridge Collapses, Freight Train Dangles Into D.C. River
Friday, November 09, 2007
WASHINGTON - An old railroad bridge collapsed Friday and several cars of a
freight train dumped coal and small amounts chemicals into the Anacostia
River.
No one was injured, and the oil and hydraulic fluid that spilled into the
water were quickly contained, said Allan Etter, a D.C. Fire Department
spokesman.
Investigators were not sure whether the derailment of ten cars or the
collapse came first, said Bob Sullivan, a spokesman for CSX Transportation
Inc.
The bridge is owned by the National Park Service and leased to CSX, which
also owns the train and the tracks, Etter said. It had not been used in
about a year, Sullivan said.
The Federal Rail Administration was investigating the cause of the accident,
Etter said. Fire inspectors found the bridge to be in serious disrepair and
not structurally sound, he said.
The 89-car train was being moved across the bridge to an indoor rail yard in
southeast Washington when the cars jumped the tracks.
Two hours after the collapse, one coal hopper sat almost sideways across the
bridge, while several others dangled into the water about 10 feet below. No
other rail traffic in the area was affected.
CSX was sending contract workers to clean up the spilled coal and chemicals
and to pull the remaining cars off the bridge and out of the water, said
Sullivan.
Bridge Collapses, Freight Train Dangles Into D.C. River
Friday, November 09, 2007
WASHINGTON - An old railroad bridge collapsed Friday and several cars of a
freight train dumped coal and small amounts chemicals into the Anacostia
River.
No one was injured, and the oil and hydraulic fluid that spilled into the
water were quickly contained, said Allan Etter, a D.C. Fire Department
spokesman.
Investigators were not sure whether the derailment of ten cars or the
collapse came first, said Bob Sullivan, a spokesman for CSX Transportation
Inc.
The bridge is owned by the National Park Service and leased to CSX, which
also owns the train and the tracks, Etter said. It had not been used in
about a year, Sullivan said.
The Federal Rail Administration was investigating the cause of the accident,
Etter said. Fire inspectors found the bridge to be in serious disrepair and
not structurally sound, he said.
The 89-car train was being moved across the bridge to an indoor rail yard in
southeast Washington when the cars jumped the tracks.
Two hours after the collapse, one coal hopper sat almost sideways across the
bridge, while several others dangled into the water about 10 feet below. No
other rail traffic in the area was affected.
CSX was sending contract workers to clean up the spilled coal and chemicals
and to pull the remaining cars off the bridge and out of the water, said
Sullivan.