Crime & Safety

Train Stopped in Its Tracks for 2 Hours After Hazmat Scare

Railroad officials investigated a possible leak on a freight train in Jessup after workers on the tracks reported symptoms of respiratory illness. No leak was found.

A freight train carrying 14 cars of hazardous materials was stopped on the tracks for two hours near Jessup this afternoon when track workers began suffering respiratory symptoms. Officials found no leaks and cleared the train for travel, Anne Arundel County Fire Division Chief Michael Cox said.

The incident drew some 30 fire and police personnel from Anne Arundel and Howard counties to the scene.

At 1:40 p.m., officials were alerted to potential leakage of hazardous materials coming from a train crossing the Anacostia Bridge outside Washington, D.C., said Cox. The concern came after several contractors working on the tracks outside Washington, D.C., had begun to exhibit "respiratory symptoms," said Cox. Coincidentally, he added, the same symptoms arose last week.

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As a result, officials decided to stop the 98-car train, which was en route to Philadelphia.

CSX is the transportation company responsible for the tracks, and "CSX officials decided to stop the train in a non-populated area to ensure there was no leak of any type," said Cox.

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The area officials chose was on the section of the railroad near Montevideo Road and Montevideo Court, straddling the Howard and Anne Arundel county lines.

Fourteen of the 98 cars contained hazardous materials, Cox reported, and none of them had been leaking.

"After approximately two hours, our investigation proved negative for any leak," concluded Cox, who noted that hazardous materials crews from Fort Meade and Anne Arundel went through each and every car.

"At no time was the public or nearby businesses in any danger," said Cox. "There was no indication that there was a leak."

The incident occurred in the middle of the day, so it was not anticipated that it would cause delays to other trains, said a railroad official on the scene. However, the Maryland Transit Administration reported a mid-afternoon interruption in service between Washington, D.C., and Savage. The MARC commuter train is among those operating on CSX railways.

Earlier report, from 3:22 p.m. Police on the border of Howard and Anne Arundel Counties were at the scene of a train incident that was first reported by police to be a derailment.

Officials later said there was no derailment but that rail workers had complained of respiratory symptoms so an investigation ensued.

Police and fire responders from several communities in both counties were on the scene, near the tracks at Montevideo Road and Montevideo Court. The train tracks were blocked as officials investigated.


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