No toxic gases detected after train carrying hazardous material plunged into Yellowstone River
COLUMBUS, Mont. (AP) — Crews on Sunday were testing the water and air quality along a stretch of the Yellowstone River where train cars carrying hazardous materials fell into the waterway following a bridge collapse.
The mangled cars that carried hot asphalt and molten sulfur remained in the rushing river a day after the bridge gave way near the town of Columbus, about 40 miles (about 64 kilometers) west of Billings, Montana. The area is in a sparsely populated section of the Yellowstone River Valley.
Water testing began Saturday and will continue throughout the incident, a spokesperson for train operator Montana Rail Link, Andy Garland, said in a statement Sunday.
Montana Rail Link was working with the Montana Department of Environmental Quality and the federal Environmental Protection Agency on the cleanup, removal and restoration efforts, he said.
“Montana Rail Link remains committed to addressing any potential impacts to the area as a result of this incident,” he said.
Meanwhile, EPA’s contractors monitoring the air downwind of the derailment have not detected any toxic gases, said Rich Mylott, a spokesperson for the agency’s regional office. Contractors working for Montana Rail Link were doing the water testing, he said.
The amount of cargo that spilled from the seven cars in the river and the danger it poses to those who rely on the river for drinking and irrigation is still not known, said David Stamey, the head of Stillwater County Disaster and Emergency Services. Results of the water testing could be released by midday Monday, he said.
Garland said both hot asphalt and molten sulfur harden and solidify quickly when mixed with water and modeling suggests that the substances are not likely to move very far downstream.
