Posted On:
June 22, 2009
NTSB Find water on Rockford rails
Federal authorities do not know if the high standing water along the northern Illinois rail line was the cause of a freight train derailment on Friday. The derailment caused a fiery explosion killing one person.
Zoila Tellez, 41, was waiting at a crossing when the train exploded. She made it out of her car and walked 20 feet before she collapsed and died.
The freight train was carrying 18 car loads of ethanol which exploded into flames.
According to the National Weather Service, the Rockford area experienced as much as 4" of rain on Friday.
Federal investigators spent most of Sunday at the scene of the derailment. The burning cars kept investigators away from the accident site for much of the day on Saturday.
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