Freight Train Carrying Hazardous Sulfuric Acid Derails In Oakland
OAKLAND (CBS SF) -- A freight train derailed Monday near the Port Of Oakland, toppling over four tanker cars carrying sulfuric acid, but fortunately the dangerous chemical has not leaked onto the tracks, fire officials said.
Oakland Fire posted tweets around 12:30 p.m. reporting the derailment on the tracks at 1400 Middle Harbor Rd. near the Port of Oakland.
Six railcars derailed with four tanker cars toppling over on their side. Oakland Fire haz-mat teams were immediately dispatched to the scene.
Crews are on the scene of a train derailment in West Oakland / Port of Oakland area. As a precaution, the #OFD HazMat team has been activated. No confirmed hazardous material has been detected at this time. More details to follow. Approximately 6 train cars have derailed. pic.twitter.com/AkaZHSiPkT
— Oakland Fire Department (CA) (@OaklandFireCA) October 18, 2021
There were no injuries reported in the derailment on the busy rail artery near Jack London Square.
Fire officials said the haz-mat teams preliminarily have not found any liquid leaking out of the toppled tanker cars and there was no immediate threat to the surrounding neighborhood.
"HazMat Teams from the train operator and #OFD are currently conducting reconnaissance to determine the extent of the damage to the derailed train cars and checking for any possible leaking material," Oakland Fire tweeted at 2:09 p.m.
Officials followed with a 2:50 p.m. Twitter update from Oakland Fire Chief Reginald Freeman -- " #HazMat has confirmed that no hazmat leaks were found."
"We got the result we were hopeful for," Freeman added.
Final Update (the previous tweet did not include the following video): The scene is now secure, no hazardous material was found to be leaking from the derailed train cars. Phenomenal work by the #HazMat Teams and other #OFD crew members & command staff who ensured a safe outcome. https://t.co/8WXaWs7OXK pic.twitter.com/8cuztADPrf
— Oakland Fire Department (CA) (@OaklandFireCA) October 18, 2021
Union Pacific Railroad would have a crew on scene late Monday afternoon to upright the cars, Freeman said.
The train was coming into the railyard slowly and did not hit anything stationary, which may have been the reason nothing was leaking when hazardous materials crews evaluated the cars. The exact cause of the derailment remains under investigation.