COTTONWOOD, Minn. - A Burlington Northern Santa Fe train derailed Friday evening in Cottonwood. Twenty-three cars loaded with corn derailed. There were no injuries, according to railroad spokeswoman Amy McBeth.
The railroad responded with equipment and workers who worked through the night and into the weekend to clear the cars and repair the tracks, she said. The track through Cottonwood is expected to be back in service Monday morning.
Trains that would have gone through Cottonwood are being rerouted to other tracks, McBeth said. The detours the trains take will vary, depending on their origins and destinations.
Lyon County Road 32, which runs parallel to the railroad tracks in that area, has been closed for staging equipment and workers and for the safety of the public, McBeth said, but the derailed cars were all in the railroad right-of-way.
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"We certainly understand and are sorry for the disruption that causes, not only for the incident but for having the road closed," she said.
The railroad personnel are working with local officials and are working as quickly and safely as they can, she added. The cause of the derailment is still under investigation.
