A Norfolk Southern cargo train derailed near Springfield on Saturday night, the second loss of the company’s trains in Ohio in a month.
Unlike February’s devastating derailment in East Palestine, Ohio, a company spokesperson assured the Columbus Dispatch no potentially harmful chemicals were involved.
The train, which did not have passengers, derailed at around 5pm near the Clark County Fairgrounds, the Dispatch report detailed.
Shelter in place orders have been issued to nearby residents amongst reports of power outages, the Clark County Emergency Management said.
Springfield is about 46 miles west of the state capital of Columbus, Ohio.
Multiple cars of a Norfolk Southern train lie toppled after derailing at a train crossing with Ohio 41 in Clark County, Ohio, Saturday, March 4, 2023. (Bill Lackey/Springfield-News Sun via AP)
The 20 cars of the 212-car train derailed while traveling south, the Norfolk Southern spokesperson said.
The State Highway Patrol said roads are closed surrounding the derailment site. Officials are urging residents to seek alternative routes.
Shawn Heaton told the Springfield News-Sun he was waiting at the intersection as the train crossed the intersection and captured the start of the derailment on video. He said:
I was right there and I was playing on my phone and then I heard a loud bang. And when I heard the loud bang, I started recording.
When I heard the bang, there was all kinds of debris and metal shoot out from under the cars and that’s when I started recording and you could see them start jumping off the tracks.
The Clark County Emergency Management Agency has asked residents within 1,000 feet of the derailment to shelter in place, but the agency said it has not issued formal evacuation orders.
As Breitbart News reported, 38 cars of a Norfolk Southern freight train in East Palestine, in northeast Ohio near Pennsylvania, derailed last month and several of the train’s cars carrying hazardous materials burned as they spewed toxic chemicals into the environment.
Remediation work is still underway in the area.