San Antonio Derailment
Oct 11, 2004

Another Freight Train Derails in San Antonio

Nine cars of a 71-car Union Pacific freight train derailed this morning, a company official said. The train was headed from Laredo to Baton Rouge, La., when it derailed on the southwestern edge of the city about 9 a.m. Seven of the derailed cars were car carriers, five of which toppled on their sides, Union Pacific spokesman Mark Davis said. No injuries were reported, and no cause has been determined, he said. The derailment, along with several previous Union Pacific rail incidents in and around San Antonio, remain under investigation, he said. The city has seen a rash of Union Pacific train accidents in the past five months. Freight trains of Union Pacific and Burlington Northern Santa Fe lines collided last month after the rear 50 cars of one train detached and rolled backward for two miles. Also this year, three people died from a chlorine gas leak and about 50 were injured. Several more were injured in two other crashes, which rattled a downtown neighborhood and a nearby high school.