Early on Saturday, a bridge in Montana that crosses the Yellowstone River collapsed, causing several freight train cars carrying hazardous materials to fall into the water. The Stillwater County Disaster and Emergency Services has reported that the hot asphalt and molten sulfur that was being transported posed a significant threat to the area’s drinking water. While officials shut down drinking water intakes downstream, the crews working at the site remain safe. Montana Rail Link spokesman, Andy Garland, stated that there were three asphalt cars and four sulfur cars in the water, and the railroad crews are attending to the site near Columbus.
The Incident
At 6 a.m. on Saturday morning, a bridge over the Yellowstone River in Montana collapsed, causing several cars of a freight train to fall into the water. As per reports from the Stillwater County Disaster and Emergency Services, some of the train cars were transporting hot asphalt and molten sulphur that could have endangered the area’s drinking water facilities and led to a significant impact on the environment.
Safety Measures
Upon witnessing the incident, crews took immediate action to ensure the safety of their colleagues at the site, with David Stamey, the county’s chief of emergency services, stating that there was no immediate danger. Furthermore, as asphalt and sulphur solidify quickly when exposed to lower temperatures, the risk associated with the hazardous materials entering the river is relatively low.
The Response
Montana Rail Link spokesman Andy Garland released a statement addressing the incident and confirmed that there were no injuries or immediate danger posed by the situation. Garland also confirmed that the railroad crews were assessing the situation more closely and looking for ways to mitigate any potential damage to the area. Although the river flows away from Yellowstone National Park and the incident occurred in a sparsely populated section of the Yellowstone River Valley surrounded by farmland and ranches, immediate action is necessary to avoid any serious damage to the area and preserve the environment.
Bridge Collapse in Montana Causes Internet Outage and Hazmat Concerns
A bridge collapse in Montana has had far-reaching effects, damaging not only the bridge itself but also a fiber-optic cable that provides internet services to a large number of customers in the state. Global Net, the high-speed provider affected by the collapse, has informed its clients that “Connectivity will either be down or extremely slow.”
The Yellowstone County, a neighboring region to where the incident occurred, has asked residents to conserve water and implemented emergency measures at water treatment plants to address concerns around a “potential hazmat spill,” following the collapse.
While the reason behind the event is currently under investigation, the recently heavy rains that have resulted in swollen river flows could be a possible cause. The same river, Yellowstone, experienced record flooding in 2022 that resulted in extensive damage to Yellowstone National Park, as well as adjacent towns in Montana.
Robert Bea, a retired engineering professor from UC Berkeley, who has examined and analyzed hundreds of major disaster incidents offers his insight on the possible reasons for the disaster. According to him, years of heavy river flows have caused erosion and removal of support from foundations. The high forces acting directly on piers and river bottoms from these flows were considered as high likelihood factors affecting structural or foundation failure, which could have triggered the accident.
The Demolition of Montana’s Twin Bridges
In 2021, the Montana Department of Transportation decided to remove the old highway bridge that ran parallel to the railroad bridge, known together as the Twin Bridges. The former was in a dangerously dilapidated state and posed a hazard to anyone crossing it. It’s unclear when exactly the railroad bridge was built or last inspected.
The collapsed bridge spilled contents from tank cars into a nearby irrigation ditch, which could have contaminated the surrounding farmland with sulfur, an element that is used for fertilizing crops and killing pests. To avert this, Kelly Hitchcock with the Columbus Water Users shut off the flow of river water downstream from the site.
Ultimately, responsibility for inspections lies with the bridge owners, and the Federal Railroad Administration requested inspection reports from them. We can hope that this incident will prompt more rigorous inspections and maintenance of bridges across the country.
