Bridge Destroyed, Fuel Spilled After Two Trains Collided

Two freight trains collided late Thursday night just north of Boulder Community Health.

The collision resulted in significant damage to a train bridge and a spill of fuel, injuring two conductors who were subsequently hospitalized with minor injuries.

“Two trains collided and Pearl will be closed for an extended period of time. The conductors have minor injuries and the fuel will have to be cleaned up.”

Boulder police said in an update that some fuel has leaked into the creek.

“Update: the train collision occurred North of Boulder Community Hospital and part of Pearl will be closed for the next few days. Part of Valmont is also blocked as well. Please continue to avoid driving or walking in this area. Xcel is working on a power line that was affected. The train bridge has been damaged and some fuel has leaked into the creek.”

“A small amount of fuel spilled from the locomotive but is not impacting the creek. Crews are on site working to clear the incident as quickly and safely as possible. There is no threat to the public,” BNSF said per Denver 7.

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According to the Boulder Police Department, the two conductors have since been released from medical care. BNSF Railway’s Director of External Communications, Kendall Sloan, confirmed the injuries but emphasized that there was no severe threat to public safety.

Initial reports indicated that fuel was leaking into Boulder Creek. However, Boulder police later clarified that the sand spilled from the train cars had allegedly absorbed most of the fuel.

According to the press release:

The BNSF Railway has now taken the lead on the train wreck that happened last night. This will be our last update until road closures are lifted:

The following roads will likely be closed/affected for a few hours up to the next few days. Please take alternative routes to avoid:

-Pearl St. between Foothills Parkway and 30th St.
-Valmont St. between Foothills Parkway and 30th St.
-34th and Valmont
-Pearl and Junction

The train itself is a about a mile-long so it will take some time to clean up and move the cars.

One rail bridge was destroyed in the crash, but no city property was damaged aside from some trees.

Initially it was believed that fuel was leaking from the engine into the creek, but it is now believed that all the fuel was absorbed by sand that spilled out of one of the cars.

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