Fires From Derailed CSX Train Allowed to Burn

By Kris Maher 

Fires from a train carrying crude oil that derailed along a river in West Virginia continued to burn Tuesday morning, as evacuated residents sought shelter nearby and state officials tried to determine whether downstream drinking-water systems had been affected.

A CSX Corp. train with more than 100 tanker cars en route from North Dakota to Yorktown, Va., derailed Monday afternoon along the Kanawha River about 30 miles outside the state capital of Charleston, causing explosions that sent fireballs hundreds of feet into the air, burned at least one home and sent crude oil into the river.

Gary Sease, a CSX spokesman, said Tuesday that the fires would be allowed to burn out on their own. He said the cause of the accident, which occurred during a winter storm and amid frigid temperatures, is under investigation.

State officials initially said at least one tanker car had fallen into the river, but early Tuesday they said that no longer appeared to be the case. Mr. Sease also said Tuesday the company didn't currently believe any cars had fallen into the river.

State police evacuated hundreds of residents of a community called Adena Village near Mt. Carbon, W.Va. State health officials and West Virginia American Water had shut the intakes for two water systems that serve several thousand customers as a precaution, and were assessing when those water systems could be reopened.

Write to Kris Maher at [e-mail]

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