Broken wheel caused Mansfield train derailment in February: DOT report
A broken wheel caused several train cars of a 41-car train to become derailed in Mansfield in February, according to a report from the Department of Transportation.
On Feb. 5, a train carrying liquefied petroleum gas derailed near Route 32 in Mansfield. Thirteen train cars became detached, and 10 of them derailed. Some rolled onto their sides and landed in the Willimantic River as well.
The train was traveling south on the Palmer Subdivision mainline railroad, which runs from St. Albans, Vermont, down to New London, with two locomotives, 27 loaded train cars, and 14 empties, according to the report.
The 31st through 40th cars derailed “due to the rim of the wheel on [one of the cars] breaking and allowing the wheel to drop in the low side of the curve,” the report stated.
The report also said the derailment caused $1,128,703 in equipment damage and $300,000 in structure damage.
About 1,500 gallons of “non-hazmat product” leaked onto the ground, according to the report. Officials from Connecticut’s Department of Emergency Services and Public Protection previously said that was cooking grease.
There was no evidence of impact on the Willimantic River, the report stated.
The DOT submitted the report to the Federal Railroad Administration.
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