8 August 2005
20 Cars Derail in Riverside New York
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Riverside New York - No injuries were reported in a train derailment Monday near Merck
& Co. Inc. in Riverside.
About 20 cars from a Canadian Pacific train derailed at about 5 p.m. in the area of Merck's west entrance along Sunbury Road.
The cars did not contain hazardous materials, two railroad employees said Monday night. One of the cars was carrying telephone
poles.
A few cars landed on their sides. A witness said the wreckage resembled an accordion.
Access to the property was cut off shortly after the derailment, with only emergency crews allowed at the scene. The area is
near the Danville Airport.
A wrecking service from Buffalo, N.Y., was on its way, the rail employees reported at 7:30 p.m. "They're five hours
away," he said. The crew was expected to work through the night to remove the damaged cars.
The derailment was reported at 5:05 p.m. Danville fire police barricaded the construction entrance and another entrance near the
west entrance. At about 6:15 p.m., an engine pulling cars not affected by the derailment was seen traveling on tracks through
Riverside.
Betse Humphrey, a Merck spokeswoman, said the accident had nothing to do with Merck other than it occurred on Merck property.
She said the derailed cars "took out some of our fence line." The railroad was in charge of the investigation, she said.
The cause was unknown. It wasn't known when rail service would resume.
A number of fire companies were called including South Side of Riverside, Danville, Mahoning Township and Elysburg. A Danville
ambulance and an Elysburg ambulance responded. Police on the scene were from Riverside, Danville and Mahoning Township.
At 6:50 p.m., most of the fire companies were released and placed back in service. One ambulance remained at the scene.
Five fire police officers continued to man the two entrances, keeping unauthorized people out. They put up a large "Road
Closed" sign as well as orange cones and flashing barricades.
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