Semitruck driver dies in Colorado after train derails, spilling cars and coal onto highway
Share and Follow

A semi-trailer truck driver was killed when a train derailed and a bridge collapsed, spewing coal and mangled train cars across a highway near Pueblo, Colorado, on Sunday, authorities said.

The driver has died, but no further details were available, Pueblo County Sheriff’s Office spokesperson Gayle Perez said by telephone on Monday. No other vehicles were involved, Perez said.

The Colorado State Patrol and the sheriff’s office posted photos and videos showing a partially collapsed bridge over the interstate with the semi-truck caught beneath. The images also show a pileup of train cars, train wheels scattered across the scene and loads of coal covering a portion of the highway. It was unclear when the bridge collapsed, state patrol spokesperson Gary Cutler said.

The National Transportation Safety Board was sending investigators to the site about 114 miles south of Denver.

VIRGINIA, HOME TO ONE OF AMERICA’S MOST CONGESTED HIGHWAYS, SET TO OPEN I-95 EXPRESS LANES EXTENSION

train derailment

The wreckage of a train derailment is pictured near Pueblo, Colorado, on Oct. 15, 2023.   (Joshua Johnson/Pueblo County Sheriff’s Office via AP)

The BNSF train carrying coal derailed on a bridge over Interstate 25 just north of Pueblo around 3:30 p.m. on Sunday, according to Kendall Kirkham Sloan, a spokesperson for the Fort Worth, Texas-based freight railroad. There were no reported injuries to BNSF crew. The cause of the derailment was under investigation and BNSF personnel were working with responding agencies to clear the incident as safely as possible, Kirkham Sloan said.

Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg said on social media that he had been in touch with Gov. Jared Polis and had been briefed by the Federal Railroad and Federal Highway administrations on the derailment and collapse. He said officials would be ready to help support a swift return to normal use for the highway and rail routes.

President Joe Biden had been scheduled to visit CS Wind, the world’s largest facility for wind tower manufacturing, in Pueblo on Monday, but postponed the trip to stay in Washington and focus on the growing conflict in the Middle East. The White House said just a few hours before Biden was set to take off for the trip that it would be rescheduled.

Pueblo is one of the anchors of Colorado’s sprawling Third Congressional District, which covers more ground than the state of Pennsylvania. Rep. Lauren Boebert, a combative Trump loyalist, won the seat in 2020 and barely held on to it during the 2022 midterms. Boebert has described Biden’s Inflation Reduction Act, the president’s signature domestic legislation and the source of hundreds of billions of dollars for clean energy incentives, as “a massive failure” that “needs to be repealed.”

A railroad bridge collapse in southern Montana in June sent railcars with oil products plunging into the Yellowstone River, spilling molten sulfur and up to 250 tons (226.7 metric tons) of hot asphalt.

Share and Follow
You May Also Like
Why Brian Cashman isn't panicking about Yankees' recent slump

Reasons Why Brian Cashman is Not Worried About the Recent Slump of the Yankees

For those seeking turned tables or impassioned speeches about the recent slump…
Honda recall: More than 259,000 cars across US recalled due to brake pedal issue, company says: Here's what to know

Honda recalls over 259,000 cars in the US due to brake pedal problem – what you need to know

NEW YORK — Honda is recalling more than 259,000 of its cars…
Kansas game wardens share photo of very rare albino fawn

Image of extremely uncommon albino baby deer uploaded by Kansas wildlife officers

TOPEKA (KSNT) – Seeing an all-white animal in the wild may make…
Hundreds of DEA agents, police, National Guard raid illegal CA pot farms

Numerous DEA agents, police officers, and National Guard members conduct raids on illicit marijuana farms in California.

RIVERSIDE COUNTY, Calif. () cameras were the only ones on the ground…
Young mother thrown from boat leaves behind grieving husband, 4 children after Alabama waters tragedy

Young mother thrown from boat leaves behind grieving husband, 4 children after Alabama waters tragedy

NEWYou can now listen to Fox News articles! A young family in…
California men charged in 'largest jewelry heist in US history'

Men from California accused in the ‘biggest jewelry theft in the history of the United States’

() Seven men from Southern California have been arrested and charged in…
Ellen DeGeneres shares a rare look at her English countryside

Ellen DeGeneres gives a special glimpse of her English rural retreat

Ellen DeGeneres shared yet another brief look at her life in the…
Chicago Mexican-Palestinian community mural vandalized, 2 attacked in Pilsen: victims; leaders call for hate crime investigation

Vandalism of a mural in the Chicago Mexican-Palestinian community leads to assaults on 2 individuals in Pilsen: victims and leaders demand a hate crime probe

CHICAGO (WLS) — Artwork meant to be a symbol of peace has…