Engineers rescued after rockslide derails train in Colorado

Two engineers were rescued in Colorado after a rockslide caused their train to derail into the Gunnison River earlier this week.

Union Pacific officials say a rockslide south of Whitewater caused the train to derail around 11 p.m. Tuesday. Two engineers became trapped inside the train.

The Grand Junction Fire Department said the remote area has no direct road access and is difficult to reach. They used a drone to help locate the derailed train while Union Pacific crews brought in a road-rail vehicle to take paramedics and search and rescue members to the site.

Authorities said the engineers were not injured when the train derailed, and first responders safely rescued them after about two hours.

The train consisted of two locomotives and five loaded rail cars hauling coal, Union Pacific said in an update Thursday. They stated that some fuel leaked as a result of the derailment and that cleanup and recovery are underway.