Burlington Northern and Santa Fe Railway (BSNF) confirmed that two trains collided in Carson County Tuesday morning at 8:40 a.m. near Panhandle, along U.S. Highway 60.
BSNF reported four employees were involved in the accident. As of late Tuesday afternoon, three employees were still unaccounted for.
The railroad company reported one employee was transported to a local hospital for treatment. Rescue efforts were underway at the scene with respect to the other three.
Emergency crews were battling a large fire resulting from the collision. The City of Panhandle was evacuating residents east of State Highway 207 and south of 7th street, according to KAMR-TV.
The train wreck was reportedly depleting the City of Panhandle’s water supply. Residents were asked to restrict water usage.
BNSF Railway issued a statement Tuesday afternoon.
BNSF has confirmed that two intermodal trains collided near Panhandle, TX, this morning, Tuesday, June 28, 2016, at approximately 8:25 a.m. CT. Four BNSF employees were involved in the incident. Local first responders and BNSF personnel were deployed to the scene. By 9:02 a.m., one employee was transported to a local hospital and is being treated. Rescue efforts are underway at the scene with respect to the three other railroad employees involved in the incident. Operating safely is the most important thing we do and our deepest concerns are for our employees and their families right now.
Our investigation is in the very early stages but based on the limited information we have reviewed, it appears that this is the type of incident that positive train control technology (PTC) is intended to prevent. This is why we have been aggressively deploying PTC across our network. While sections of the track operated by the eastbound train involved in this accident have PTC installed and are being tested, the section of track where the incident occurred will be installed later this year.
(MyHighPlains.com contributed to this report.)
