MANSFIELD, CT (WFSB) – Heavy equipment removed all rail cars from the Willimantic River after a train derailed in Mansfield Thursday.
The rail cars are now upright on land.
Officials held a news conference at noon on Friday and said that it could take several more days to complete the cleanup process.
Several cars, including some that carried liquid propane, ended up in the Willimantic River on Thursday morning.
Ten cars derailed near Route 32, Stafford Road, around 9 a.m. They were part of a 43-car New England Central Railroad train that came from from Palmer, MA.
According to town officials, the back 13 cars detached, and 10 of them derailed, with nine rolling over onto their sides.
Recovery team members from New England Central Rail, who traveled from Pennsylvania and Maryland, were spotted walking around the scene to assess the situation and figure out the best next steps.
Officials said six derailed cars carried liquid propane, while others carried general goods including kitchen grease and lumber.
“While everything is safe and stable right now, there is always the potential of an accident or something happening. So we ask people to maintain a safe distance away from it. If you can see the rail cars, you’re probably a little too close,” said Chief John Roache of the Mansfield Fire Department.
By late Friday morning, crews were able to remove one of the cars. The damaged cars off-railed won’t go back on the track, according to the train company,
State Department of Energy and Environmental Protection officials said they have been monitoring the situation and placed booms in the water to stop any potential leaks from expanding.
Kitchen grease from one car leaked, but was contained. None of the propane tanks were leaked, officials said.
“We are going to do a continuous monitoring as long as it takes – as many days – whatever the time frame is – and that’s going to be dependent on the train company and their recovery operations,” said Rich Scalora, DEEP.
The Connecticut Division of Emergency Management and Homeland Security shared photos of its response:
Air monitoring continued on Friday, and town officials said a shelter-in-place order for people within a half-mile radius remained in effect. They told residents to keep their windows closed. Two nearby daycares were also sheltering in place.
A conductor and engineer were aboard when the derailment occurred. Neither was hurt.
The cleanup operation was expected to last several days.
Town officials said the rural area has a lot of snow on the ground. Crews also battled frigid temperatures.
They worked to clear a bigger path in the snow from Route 32 down to the derailment site.
“It’s contained, but it’s very close to the waterway, so we’re trying to be very cautious with the crews we have to make sure they don’t slip and fall in the water as well,” said Chief Roache.
Town Manager Ryan Aylesworth declared an emergency to access necessary resources.
Route 32 between Routes 275 and 44 remained closed into Friday, with officials expecting it to stay that way for days.
The town said they worked with school leaders and the bus company to arrange alternative school bus routes.
For real-time traffic updates, check the Channel 3 First Alert traffic map here.
UConn said it had no evacuations and no operations were impacted on its Storrs campus.
“I only left for the gym maybe a few minutes earlier and the [traffic] light over here was super backed up. I was kind of confused because it was too early in the morning, and then a bunch of ambulances came, a bunch of firetrucks came in, and I thought ‘oh damn something must’ve happened,’” said Daniel Root, a UConn student who lives less than a mile from the scene.
“It’s a really. It’s pretty interesting seeing it in person,” said Jake Ferrucci, who also lives nearby. “It’s a kind of stuff you see on the news this doesn’t happen outside your house. I guess today it did.”
No cause for the derailment has been released.
Officials plan to hold a press conference at noon on Saturday to provide more updates on the efforts.
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