No one was injured, but several yards of train track were torn up, an official said.
A photo showing two derailed train cars and the damage to the tracks following a train wreck Tuesday in South Amherst.This is an update of a story originally posted at 3:58 p.m.
AMHERST - The derailment of six to eight freight train cars presents no threat to public safety, but it could take days to clear the scene and repair damage to the rail lines, an Amherst town official said.
No one was injured in the 2 p.m. derailment, but six to eight of the 55 train cars jumped the tracks, said town official W. David Ziomek, who is acting as town manager while David P. Musante is away.
The train was owned by New England Central Railroad, the St. Albans, Vt. company that operates on the 400 miles of track between the Vermont and Quebec borders and New London, Conn.
The company general manager could not be reached for comment.
Ziomek said it is not clear what cargo was in the cars, but none of it is considered to be threat. It is not clear if any of the cargo spilled from the freight cars.
Police and fire officials have inspected the cars and said there is no danger and it is not considered a hazardous materials emergency, he said.
The cars that derailed were did not flip over, but were off the tracks and leaning heavily to one side.
Several yards of track were torn up and will take several days to clear away the derailed cars and repair the lines, he said.
Station Road remained closed to motor vehicle traffic Tuesday evening, and it would likely remained closed Wednesday, he said.
Cliff Cole, a spokesman for Amtrak, said that as far as he knows, the damage to the track will not affect any of its operations. He said he has not been notified of any service impairment. Amtrak's Vermonter line passes through Amherst twice a day as part of Amtrak service between St. Albans and Washington DC.
Republican reporter Diane Lederman contributed to this story
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