A freight train loaded with motor vehicles jumped the tracks in Ferguson late Sunday, snarling the 600 block of Ferguson Avenue and knocking out power to a stretch of the neighborhood, but police say no one was hurt and there is no hazardous materials threat.
Local broadcaster KSDK reported Sunday evening that the derailed train was carrying vehicles and went off the tracks in the 600 block of Ferguson Avenue near Godfrey Lane. No injuries were reported, and there was no hazardous materials threat.
Power outages were reported in the area. Utility companies responded as a precaution. Ferguson officials are urging the public to avoid the derailment area completely and to follow police commands regarding traffic and pedestrian movement while crews work.
Not Ferguson's First Norfolk Southern Derailment
This is not the first time a train has derailed in Ferguson. Another train derailed in the same area nearly six years earlier.
Norfolk Southern operates a freight rail network spanning 22 eastern states and Washington, D.C., with mainlines running through the Greater St. Louis area, a critical Midwestern freight gateway. Nationwide, Federal Railroad Administration data shows freight derailments average roughly 1,000 incidents a year across Class I railroads, though the vast majority happen at low speeds during switching operations and do not cause casualties or toxic spills.
Federal Reporting Rules And Recent Regional Incidents
Railroads must report derailments to the Federal Railroad Administration.
A May freight incident also occurred around the region this year. In May, 13 Union Pacific coal cars derailed in East Carondelet, Illinois, causing road closures but no injuries or hazardous material leaks, as Hoodline previously reported.
Infrastructure Investment Along The Corridor
The derailment site sits near a corridor that has seen significant public investment in recent years. The U.S. Department of Transportation awarded St. Louis County an $18.2 million federal RAISE discretionary grant to reconstruct roughly 1.5 miles of the West Florissant Avenue corridor running through Ferguson to Ferguson Avenue.
The cause of Sunday's derailment remains unclear.
