Feb. 14 (UPI) — Authorities said one person is dead after a truck crashed into a train in southeastern Texas, causing multiple cargo cars to derail.
The crash between the 18-wheeler and the train occurred at about 7:30 a.m. Monday along Highway 59 in the area of Midline Road in Splendora City, located about 40 miles northeast of Houston.
“Sadly, the driver of this truck succumbed to injuries sustained in this wreck,” the East Montgomery County Fire Department said in a statement. “Our thoughts and prayers are with that individual’s family.”
More than a dozen rail cars were forced off the track due to the crash, it said.
The incident blocked all main lanes of the I-69 northbound at Fosteria Road for a number of hours, according to the Texas Department of Transport. As of Monday night, the northbound frontage road remained closed.
Lt. Tory Teller of the Splendora Police Department told Houston Public Media that 21 train cars had derailed and that a Union Pacific hazardous materials crew were on the scene.
“From what we’re being told and shown, there’s no major chemicals to be concerned about,” Teller said. “It’s more so household chemicals on board for retail purposes. It’s not a large quantity from what we’ve been told.”
He added that the crash occurred as the 18-wheeler was attempting to cross that section of the road.
The train derailment is the second in the United States in under two weeks.
In Ohio, a train derailed on Feb. 3, with several of the 20 derailed cars containing hazardous materials.
Concerns of an explosion prompted officials in East Palestine where the incident occurred to evacuate residents within a large swath of area that went into neighboring Pennsylvania.