19 BNSF train cars derail near Crossport

BONNERS FERRY —A train derailment at 1:55 a.m. on May 22 by Katka mountain in the Crossport area southeast of Bonners Ferry destroyed both parallel sections of Burlington Northern Santa Fe track and accordioned, piling and twisting 19 train cars less than a week after a smaller derailment on the same stretch of track.

The train cars, which were around the mid-point of the 116 car train were carrying crushed bentonite clay product. Among other uses, bentonite is used industrially as drilling mud, as a binder for foundry sand in iron and steel molds, as a fining agent in wine and for cat litter.

Seattle BNSF spokesman Gus Melonas said nothing spilled in the river, which was flowing at a higher level for sturgeon spawning, and no hazardous materials were involved in the wreck. The train originated in Great Falls, Mont., with a destination of Pasco, Wash., and was also carrying general merchandise, beer and grain.

Local Bonners Ferry crews responded to the call, and crews were called from Havre, Whitefish and Libby, Mont., and Spokane and Pasco. Heavy equipment was called up from Pasco as well as a hazardous response team, which determined there was no environmental or public threat, said Melonas.

Boundary County incident Commander Bob Graham joined sheriff’s deputies to survey the scene the morning of the accident but determined that BNSF had the situation under control, and there was no hazardous incident that required a response.

BNSF crews worked through the night May 22 as trains were positioned at points east and west in anticipation of the track reopening the next morning.

Trains were rolling through the repaired section by 7 a.m., May 23. The route is one of the busiest in northern Idaho, with 44 trains that use it from as far away as the Great Lakes and Chicago.

Crews piled the broken and crushed train cars in a nearby field, where they could be cut up by BNSF employees and trucked away for scrap, said Melonas.

The cause of the derailment is still under investigation.