CHARLEMONT — A derailment Saturday along the south bank of the Deerfield River left 18 freight cars listing crazily on the tracks, but firefighters said the three carrying hazardous materials did not leak.
Charlemont Fire Chief Douglas Annear said there were no injuries. The cause of the accident remained unknown at 4:30 p.m., as firefighters worked to determine their response and waited for Pan Am Railways to put their train back on the rails. Two small brush fires related to the accident were quickly extinguished.
Annear said all the cars remained upright and there were no leaks.
Fire departments from multiple surrounding towns responded to the derailment, around 3:18 p.m.
More than a mile long, the train blocked the Route 8A bridge over the Deerfield River. The river flows immediately beside the tracks in the area of the derailment, a wooded stretch without nearby homes.
You can reach Chris Curtis at:
ccurtis@recorder.com