A train carrying hazardous materials derailed and caught fire early Friday in rural North Dakota, authorities said.
Twenty-nine cars of a Canadian Pacific Kansas City (CPKC) train derailed at around 3:30 a.m. near the town of Bordulac, an area of farmland in Foster County with just around 20 residents, about 110 miles northwest of Fargo.
Photos posted online by X user @Zinkfarms show several train cars still ablaze along the tracks in the daylight later Friday morning. A thick plume of black smoke can be seen rising over the derailment site.
CPKS said in a statement to Trains.com that it had "initiated its emergency response plan and launched a comprehensive, coordinated response" to the derailment.
"Crews, including senior officers from our operations and hazardous materials teams, are responding to assess the situation. We are coordinating with local emergency response officials already on scene," the company told the outlet. CPKC also confirmed there were "hazardous materials" on the train.
"There are no reports of injuries. The safety of the public and emergency responders is CPKC's first priority," the company said.
Bill Suess, spill investigation program manager for the North Dakota Department of Environmental Quality, told the Associated Press that the train cars were carrying anhydrous ammonia, sulfur and methanol. Suess said the ammonia carries risk, but that the wind was carrying the smoke away from Bordulac.
"Wind has been in our favor on this," Suess told the AP. "That risk has greatly subsided."
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, even low amounts of ammonia in the air can quickly cause eye and nose irritation. Larger amounts can burn the skin, mouth, throat, lungs and eyes, while very high levels can cause lung damage or death.
The North Dakota Department of Environmental Quality said in a statement that it will monitor the remediation and cleanup.
--with reporting by TMX
