BURLINGTON — A Burlington Northern Santa Fe train derailed near Burlington early Sunday morning and caught fire. Nearby residents also received an evacuation alert.
Burlington Fire Chief Karter Lessman said about 20 to 30 containers, with non-hazardous materials, derailed into a coulee between Minot and Des Lacs around 1 a.m.
Minot Central Dispatch issued an evacuation alert to residents, including some Minot residents shortly after 2 a.m. About an hour later, most residents received an All Clear alert.
Lessman said there were a few people that did have to evacuate this morning, but they have been let back in.
BNSF released a statement saying, "The derailed cars held containers carrying freight of all kinds. Cars with hazardous materials were not derailed and have been cut from the train and moved away from the scene. We are working with local fire departments as they respond to a fire in containers carrying paper products and frozen foods. There were no injuries reported in the incident and the cause is under investigation. We appreciate the assistance of local responders as additional crews arrive and will begin to restore the tracks to service."
"The ground's so wet, we can't get into it with trucks," said Lessman. "The first thing we gotta do is get the fire out, but we can't get to it yet. We got probably two thirds of it out, but we can't get any closer. We're looking at it from different angles trying to figure it out."
Lessman added he isn't sure when the entire scene will be all cleaned up.
