Rail traffic resumed Wednesday through a derailment site in Marana on Union Pacific tracks that are a main freight route between Texas and California.
Union Pacific says 27 freight cars derailed around 3:30 p.m. Tuesday on tracks parallel to Interstate 10 during heavy monsoon rains. No injuries were reported.
The I-10 frontage road from Twin Peaks to Avra Valley roads closed after the derailment. According to the Town of Marana on Twitter, the road could be closed for another day due to cleanup.
Crews worked overnight to clear debris and equipment from one of the two tracks, Union Pacific spokesman Jeff DeGraff said. This allowed train traffic to resume through the derailment site at reduced speeds by 3 a.m.
Work on the second track continues, DeGraff said. Beyond clearing equipment and debris, the second track experienced damage and will need repairing. It is currently unknown when the second track will reopen.
This morning, Marana police said there was heavy traffic on Cortaro Road at I-10 because of the slow-moving trains. Drivers are advised to use alternate routes.
The derailment happened during a monsoon Tuesday afternoon. Running water was reportedly on the tracks when firefighters arrived to the scene,Β Brian Keeley, a Northwest Fire District spokesman, said yesterday.
However, DeGraff said that it has not been confirmed if rain was the cause of the derailment. The cause remains under investigation, he said.
DeGraff said the derailed cars carried consumer and manufactured goods but that no hazardous materials were released or involved in the derailment.
UPS packages were among the items on the train. According to Matthew O'Connor, a UPS spokesman, the company is currently identifying the packages affected by the derailment. Once identified, UPS will notify the owners of the packages of what steps to take next.Β
Packages not affected by the derailment will continue to their destinations, O'Connor said. UPS said they could not disclose the shipping locations of the packages.Β
Photos: Union Pacific train derailed north of Tucson
Union Pacific train derailment in Marana
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Crews work on the cleanup of Tuesday's Union Pacific derailment north of Twin Peaks Rd on July 11, 2018
Union Pacific train derailment in Marana
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Piles of product lies alongside fallen train cars at the cleanup of Tuesday's Union Pacific derailment north of Twin Peaks Rd on July 11, 2018.
Union Pacific train derailment in Marana
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A crane lifts pre-fabricated rail sections onto the track bed during the cleanup of Tuesday's Union Pacific derailment north of Twin Peaks Rd on July 11, 2018.
Union Pacific train derailment in Marana
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Crews work on the cleanup of Tuesday's Union Pacific derailment north of Twin Peaks Rd on July 11, 2018.
Union Pacific train derailment in Marana
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A crane lifts pre-fabricated rail sections onto the track bed behind train car debris during the cleanup of Tuesday's Union Pacific derailment north of Twin Peaks Rd on July 11, 2018.
Union Pacific train derailment in Marana
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Packages litter the area around the fallen shipping cars during on the cleanup of Tuesday's Union Pacific derailment north of Twin Peaks Rd on July 11, 2018.
Union Pacific train derailment in Marana
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Workers sort through packages being pulled from overturned cars during the cleanup of Tuesday's Union Pacific derailment north of Twin Peaks Rd on July 11, 2018.
Train derailment
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Union Pacific train derailment on the east side of I-10 just north of Twin Peaks Road in Marana on July 10, 2018.
Train derailment
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Union Pacific train derailment on the east side of I-10 just north of Twin Peaks Road in Marana on July 10, 2018.
Train derailment
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An empty flatbed car on a bridge over a ditch filled with run-off following a train derailment just north of the Twin Peaks exit on I-10, Tuesday July 10, 2018.
Train derailment
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Several cars of an east bound train that derailed just north of the Twin Peaks exit on I-10, Tuesday July 10, 2018.
Train derailment
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Several cars askew but still attached to the front part of a train that lost several cars near the rear of the train to derail just north of the Twin Peaks exit on I-10, Tuesday July 10, 2018.
Train derailment
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Several cars and debris from an east bound train derailment just north of the Twin Peaks exit on I-10, Tuesday July 10, 2018.
Train derailment
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Several cars lie in a rain filled ditch, the rear portion of a train derailment just north of the Twin Peaks exit on I-10, Tuesday July 10, 2018.
Derailment
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Several partially clinging to the tracks and still attached to the lead train, part of a derailment just north of the Twin Peaks exit on I-10, Tuesday July 10, 2018, Tucson, Ariz.
