Man injured after truck/train collision

Emergency crews responded to this truck vs. train incident Thursday afternoon near the Burlington Northern-Santa Fe rail yard.

courtesy image

FORT MADISON - A truck that was struck by a train late Thursday afternoon near the BNSF rail yard has resulted in one individual being sent to an area hospital with injuries.
At 5:12 p.m. Thursday, the Fort Madison Fire Department was dispatched to a report of a vehicle that had been struck by a train and was on fire near the BNSF railroad yard in southwest Fort Madison.
Upon arrival, Fort Madison police reported the vehicle was fully engulfed and in contact with a stationary train. The affected railcar was placarded with extremely flammable material, and adjacent cars were marked as carrying flammable gas, prompting a hazardous materials response. An all-call for off-duty Fort Madison firefighters was initiated at 5:24 p.m. due to the complexity of the scene.
At the time the alarm was received, all on-duty personnel were attending different events within the city. The alarm was received at 5:13 p.m. with the first unit en route by 5:15 p.m. and on scene by 5:27 p.m. Fire crews immediately deployed fire suppression on the vehicle fire. Several railroad ties were also burning nearby and were quickly extinguished. The train was stationary at the time of the incident, but did sustain damage from the fire and collision. The scene was cleared at 7:53 p.m.
Fort Madison Fire Chief Chad Hannum established command of the incident. Assisting agencies on scene included the Fort Madison Police Department, Lee County EMS Ambulance, BNSF Railway officials, as well as Rairden's Towing and Dunkin Towing, who were tasked with lifting the vehicle from the tracks without causing damage to the rail infrastructure.
The vehicle’s driver was located by law enforcement several blocks west of the incident, walking along the tracks. The victim's condition is unknown at this time and their identity is being withheld pending further investigation.
“This was a dangerous situation given the presence of flammable materials, but our team acted quickly and effectively to contain the threat,” said Chief Hannum.
The incident remains under investigation.