16 July 2008
Iowa Studies IC&E Derailment Site
Guttenberg Iowa USA - The environmental impact of the four
derailed locomotives in the backwaters of the Mississippi River remains a mystery.
It's a mystery that the Iowa Department of Natural Resources intends to uncover.
"We're looking at the site, below the site, and above the site, for potential pollution," said Joe Wilkinson, spokesman with
the Iowa DNR.
Early Wednesday morning, an automobile-sized boulder crashed onto the railroad tracks south of Guttenberg. The unexpected
crash sent four locomotives with the Iowa, Chicago & Eastern Railroad into the river.
Nearly a week later, the locomotives were still in the backwaters called Bluff Slough.
"I don't have a timeline at this time," said Herb Jones, spokesman with Iowa, Chicago & Eastern, about when the
locomotives will be removed from the backwaters.
The Iowa DNR placed 17 booms near the derailment site to absorb the diesel fuel and transmission oil that continues to leak into the
river from the locomotives.
On Monday, the Iowa DNR did a shoreline assessment of the area with the assistance of Sun Pro, an environmental agency.
"There is residue and evidence that some of (the fuel and oil) got on the shoreline," Wilkinson said. "We are taking
samples and saving them."
The Iowa DNR will turn its attention away from the shoreline and toward the fish population today.
"We're finding a few (animals) along the shoreline or in the water that were dead," Wilkinson said.
He stressed the animals could have died from something not associated with the locomotive derailment. A necropsy, or autopsy, will be
performed on the dead animals.
"We found no evidence of a big fish kill," Wilkinson said.
Although the locomotives remain in the water, the area is open to boaters - at least it was as of Monday afternoon.
"It is open to no-wake boating, but it may close at a moment's notice," Wilkinson said.
The area is classified as a no-wake zone mainly because waves potentially could move the containment booms higher and let
the diesel fuel escape down the river.
The Bluff Slough will be closed to boaters temporarily when the locomotives are removed from the river.
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