AMARILLO, Texas – Two BNSF Railway trains collided head on near the small town of Panhandle, about 27 miles northeast of Amarillo on Tuesday morning. Preliminary reports from KFDA-TV NewChannel 10 in Amarillo show two double-stack container trains derailed and on fire in a field along the Class I railroad’s main line in the area.
“(Federal Railroad Administration) investigators on site have confirmed two BNSF intermodal freight trains collided head-on near Panhandle, Texas. Injuries reported,” the agency says via Twitter.
Fox News reports that only one of the presumed four employees involved has been located. That person was transported to a nearby hospital in stable condition.
According to BNSF, the trains involved are S-LACLPC1-26 and Q-CHISBD6-27.
Both the FRA and National Transportation Safety Board have sent investigators to the scene, according to the agencies’ Twitter accounts.
The line is part of BNSF’s former Santa Fe “Southern Transcon” route between Southern California and Chicago. At the site of the derailment the route is known as the Panhandle Subdivision.
Trains News Wire will offer the latest information on this developing story.
