Two CSX Trains in Florida Collide, Derail; Two Injured
Marion Country (Fla.) Fire Handout/ReutersUPDATE (Nov. 17): FROM CSX — Crews and contractors made significant progress overnight at the site where two trains collided Nov. 16 in Citra, Fla. All derailed freight cars and locomotives have been moved off the tracks to a temporary staging area, and crews continue recovering the coal, phosphate and diesel fuel that spilled on the ground. Crews are expected to begin rebuilding the mainline tracks Nov. 17.
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Two CSX Corp trains collided and derailed in central Florida early on Nov. 16, injuring two crew members, the company said.
One freight train carrying nonhazardous phosphate rock and the second train loaded with coal collided in Citra, Florida, about 4:15 a.m., CSX said.
The cause of the collision was under investigation, and the two CSX crew members were being treated for minor injuries, the company said.
Twenty rail cars overturned, according to the Marion County Sheriff's Office, though CSX was unable to confirm the number.
Marion Country (Fla.) Fire Handout/ReutersThe derailment caused a 4,000-gallon fuel leak from the trains, a CBS television affiliated station in Orlando reported.
The phosphate train was traveling from Mulberry, Florida, to Chicago, with three locomotives and 100 loaded phosphate cars, CSX said.
The coal train was traveling from Pembroke, Kentucky, to Tampa, Florida, with three locomotives and 110 carloads of coal, it said.
The derailment happened at a rail crossing about 100 miles northwest of Orlando.
