A cargo train carrying hazardous chemicals derailed and caught on fire in rural North Dakota early Friday (July 5) morning. The CPKC cargo train was about 140 miles north of Fargo when 29 cars derailed around 3:45 a.m. Between 10 and 15 train cars caught on fire after the crash.
There were no reports of injuries in the derailment.
Officials said that derailed cars were transporting anhydrous ammonia, sulfur, and methanol and that toxic fumes were being released as the chemicals burned. However, authorities have not issued evacuation orders as the wind was blowing the toxic smoke away from populated areas.
“Wind has been in our favor on this,” Bill Suess, spill investigation program manager for the North Dakota Department of Environmental Quality, said. “That risk has greatly subsided. Still there — as long as fires are burning.”
He said that if the winds change direction, people living in the towns of Bordulac and Carrington may be asked to leave their homes.
Investigators have not determined what caused the train to derail.
Doug Zink, a local farmer, shared photos and videos of the train fire on X.
