Train Derailment in Wisconsin Sends Railcars Into Mississippi River

Recovery work is shown at the scene of a train derailment along Hwy 35 in Crawford County just south of DeSoto, Wis., on April 27, 2023. Mark Hoffman/Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel via AP

A freight train derailed in Crawford County, Wisconsin, on Thursday, sending two locomotives into the Mississippi River, according to BNSF Railway.

The derailment occurred on the eastern edge of the Mississippi River, near De Soto, around 30 miles south of La Crosse.

BNSF Railway said in a statement that two of the three locomotives and an unknown number of cars derailed on the bluff side of the river.

The Crawford County Sheriff’s Office said on its Facebook page that there was no need to evacuate.

According to Lena Kent, a spokesperson for the railway, none of the railcars involved in the incident contained hazardous materials. Some of the cars that derailed on shore contained paint and lithium-ion batteries. “The volumes involved don’t pose a risk to the river or the communities,” she said.

A boom would be placed in the impacted areas, Kent said.

All crew members were accounted for, with one receiving a medical evaluation.

While the main track is blocked in both directions, BNSF personnel were at the scene investigating the cause of the incident.

Meanwhile, the Federal Railroad Administration (FRA), a division of the U.S. Department of Transportation that regulates safety across the nation’s railroads, said on Twitter that it’s sending a team to gather information and assist local emergency workers.

“FRA has sent safety personnel to the scene of a BNSF derailment in Crawford County, WI, to gather information and support local efforts as needed,” the agency said.

Gov. Tony Evers said on Twitter that he was briefed on the derailment and is getting regular updates from the Wisconsin Department of Transportation, the Department of Natural Resources, and state emergency management officials.

“As the scene is along the Mississippi River, I am reaching out to [Iowa Gov. Kim Reynolds] and [Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker], and we will continue to be in close communication to offer state support to our local, state, and federal partners, including [NTSB], which is the lead responding agency,” Evers said.

This incident follows the evacuation of hundreds of people in Raymond, Minnesota, last month after a BNSF train hauling ethanol and corn syrup derailed and caught fire.

It also occurred almost three months after a Norfolk Southern train derailed in East Palestine, Ohio, where officials decided to release and burn toxic vinyl chloride from five tanker cars to prevent a catastrophic explosion.