Fiery train derailment in Minnesota prompts evacuations
Authorities say a train hauling ethanol and corn syrup has derailed and caught fire in Minnesota and nearby residents have been ordered to evacuate from their homes. Kandiyohi County Sheriff Eric Tollefson says in a statement that the derailment of the BNSF train was reported about 1 a.m. Thursday in the town of Raymond, about 100 miles west of Minneapolis. Tollefson says “numerous” rail cars derailed, several caught fire and homes in an area 1/2 mile around the site were evacuated. Railroad safety has been in the spotlight nationally ever since last month’s fiery derailment of a Norfolk Southern train near East Palestine, Ohio.