Fiery train derailment in Kentucky spills ethanol into river

First responders are on the scene of a train derailment at in eastern Kentucky, Thursday, Feb. 13, 2020. Two crew members of the CSX train were initially trapped and a flammable liquid was leaking into a nearby river, said Charles Maynard with Pike County Emergency Management. Maynard said he wan't sure if the crew members were injured but that crews were trying to extricate them. He wasn't aware of any other reports of possible injuries. (Russ Cassady/Appalachian News-Express via AP)

PIKEVILLE, Ky. (AP) — A fiery train derailment Thursday morning in eastern Kentucky trapped two crew members and caused a chemical leak into a river, authorities said.

Two crew members of the CSX train were initially trapped before getting out and a flammable liquid was leaking into a river, said Charles Maynard with Pike County Emergency Management.

CSX said in a statement that the train derailed into the Big Sandy River around 7 a.m. due to a rock slide over the tracks. The crew members were able to get out and made it safely to shore, the company said.

The derailment happened in the community of Draffin, about 160 miles (255 kilometers) southeast of Lexington, Kentucky. Video showed a wooded area behind homes ablaze.

CSX said the train had 96 cars carrying ethanol and two cars loaded with rocks. It was not clear how many cars derailed.

One locomotive and an unknown number of cars caught fire. CSX said it had mobilized its emergency teams and were working with local authorities.

Maynard said he wasn’t aware of any other reports of injuries.

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