A derailment of four cars on a freight train Friday night in Pottstown closed the railroad tracks along the Schuylkill River, as well as a section of Industrial Highway, well into Saturday afternoon.
Pottstown Fire Department was dispatched about 8 p.m. Friday to the area of South Hanover Street and College Drive/Industrial Highway.
As Norfolk Southern Railroad crews worked to rerail the affected railcars, one car containing butyl acrylate disconnected from recovery equipment and traveled down an embankment, Norfolk Southern said in a statement.
“There are no reports of injuries or leaks, and our teams are working closely with local first responders and the Department of Environmental Protection to remove the car,” the statement said early Saturday afternoon. “We ask that the public please keep away from the area while this work continues.”
Pottstown Fire Chief Frank Hand said fire department personnel monitored the scene throughout the night and Saturday morning. Norfolk Southern Railroad brought in a crane and other heavy equipment.
Industrial Highway remained closed between South Hanover and South Washington streets throughout the recovery operation.
As of early afternoon, Norfolk Southern crews were in the process of pumping the contents of the tanker that capsized into another tanker so it can be removed.
Hand said the material wasn’t believed to be of a volatile nature and stressed there is no danger to the surrounding community.
Butyl acrylate, a liquid organic compound, is widely used as a building block in the production of various polymers used in the manufacture of paints, coatings, adhesives, textiles, and plastics.