Train derailment in Montana spills cargo, the state's second such incident in a month

A freight train derailment in northern Montana spilled cargo and left cars tangled up along a major east-west railroad corridor, local media reported on Sunday, the second such accident in the same state in a month.

The latest accident involved a BNSF Railway freight traveling Friday at 5:39 p.m. near the Milk River, east of the small town of Havre. Eleven cars derailed in the incident, but no one was injured.

The cause of the incident is under investigation, according to BNSF spokesperson Lena Kent. Cleanup and repair work was carried out on Saturday, and the line was reopened for service.

One car hauling paint thinner derailed but did not spill, said Hill County Disaster and Emergency Services coordinator Amanda Frickel. Other cars carrying cake mix, napkins, carrots and other consumer goods broke open and spilled.

Roughly three train derailments per day in the U.S.

The incident is the latest in a series of recent train derailments in the U.S. this year. On June 24, a bridge that crosses the Yellowstone River in southern Montana collapsed, plunging portions of a freight train carrying hazardous materials into the rushing water below. Then on July 11, a pair of Amtrak train cars derailed outside Washington D.C.'s Union Station, causing delays. Days later, a freight train derailed near Philadelphia, the largest city in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania, on the morning of July 17, prompting precautionary evacuations.

One of the incidents that drew national attention occurred on February 3 when a Norfolk Southern freight train carrying hazardous materials derailed in East Palestine, Ohio, resulting in a fire and the release of hazardous materials in the area.

Railroads in the U.S. are largely self-regulated, but freight railcar inspections are happening less often and are not as thorough as in years past due to staff cuts, time constraints and regulatory loopholes, a union official testified last month during a federal hearing to examine the reasons behind the February 3 train derailment.

There were at least 1,164 train derailments across the U.S. last year, according to data from the Federal Railroad Administration, meaning that the country is averaging about three derailments per day.

(CGTN)