Mass evacuations were underway in Sibley, Iowa, after a train hauling fertilizer derailed, the Des Moines Register reports.
Per the outlet, the Osceola Sheriffs' Office called in multiple rescue crews and fire departments to handle the situation, including an entire team in Hazmat suits to contend with the 30 train car pileup.
The main concern from authorities was that the cars were carrying fertilizer and explosive ammonium nitrate. Multiple cars burst into flames, with on scene videos showing smoke hurling into the sky. Authorities worked to clear everyone within a 5-mile radius out of fear of even more explosions, and said that the derailment was likely caused by a bridge collapse.
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Nate Minten, a longtime resident of Sibley, posted drone footage of the crash, and was one of the first to notice the smoke. “I could see smoke filling up a couple hundred feet at least,” he told the Des Moines Register. “We didn’t hear any bangs or anything.”
The Iowa train derailment is similar in nature to a Union Pacific train that derailed in south Minnesota on Saturday. The cars piled up and caught on fire there as well, with around 28 cars falling off the track. Another derailment also took place in Missouri recently, as six cars spilled off the tracks and into a main traffic-filled road.
