Around 3:23 p.m. yesterday in a remote area of Morgan County, Tennessee, a Norfolk Southern train derailed near milepost 243.9, resulting in the derailment of 15 to 20 box cars. Although the train was carrying ethanol and an active fire broke out, officials confirmed there were no injuries and no toxic fumes, prompting authorities to let the ethanol fire safely burn itself out.

Due to the remote location, ground access was initially difficult, leading emergency responders to evacuate nearby residents out of an abundance of caution; however, this evacuation order has since been lifted. While there is no impact on local road traffic, multiple local, state, and federal agencies—including the Morgan County Sheriff’s Office and the Emergency Management Agency—are coordinating with Norfolk Southern crews.

Heavy equipment like cranes has been brought into the Lansing area to mitigate the scene, and while the cause of the incident remains unknown, cleanup efforts are expected to take a couple of days.