NORTH PLATTE, Neb.— An incident Thursday on the west end of Union Pacific’s Bailey Yard caused the evacuation of nearby residents, the Associated Press reports. Everyone within a 1-mile radius was evacuated and U.S. Highway 30 (between North Platte and Hershey) was shut down.
At approximately 12:10 p.m., an explosion of an intermodal container on a railcar began spreading fire to nearby railcars. The blast involved a chemical onboard called perchloric acid — a strong mineral acid used as an oxidizer — also known to be an explosion hazard. As seen on the right in the screenshot, there was a release of heavy, dark plumes of toxic smoke causing an immediate threat.
According to railroad spokeswoman Robynn Tysver, UP is not clear as to what caused the explosion. She confirmed that the car was stationary and no derailment took place.
No one was injured however. The North Platte Volunteer Fire Department confirmed the emergency evacuation was due to the smoke and posted photos of the area on X (formerly Twitter). Once the fire was extinguished by 5:30 p.m., the railroad was able to resume use of the whole yard.
