Precautionary evacuation lifted after train carrying chemicals derails in Louisiana

Four chemical tankers running through Louisiana derailed on Tuesday giving authorities and residents in the area quite the scare. A precautionary evacuation order was issued for the area shortly after the trains derailed in the West Baton Rouge Parish town of Addis around 1:30 pm on Tuesday. The evacuation was lifted early Wednesday morning, according to parish officials.

The investigation into the incident to determine how the trains went awry continues. Officials will be removing the rail cars in order to inspect the track. Whether it was a mechanical error, infrastructural fault or a human error that caused the accident is still unknown.

U-T San Diego reports that Rickey Anderson, Addis Police Chief, says the rail cars belonged to various companies but were being hauled by Union Pacific. Jeff DeGraff, Union Pacific spokesman, told The Associated Press that the derailment happened while the train was switching to a different track on its way out of the Addis rail yard. Thankfully, there were no injuries or leaks reported.

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