Canadian Oil Train Derailment Spills Thousands Of Gallons Of Crude In Illinois

Cleanup efforts continued Saturday in Plainfield after a train carrying crude oil derailed early Friday evening. No one was injured in the derailment. Officials confirmed that oil leaked from two of the cars on the Canadian National freight train, and a possible third car was leaking oil. It remained unclear how much oil had leaked, but one estimate suggested as much as 45,000 gallons of oil had leaked out of the two cars. Rail and environmental officials stressed that there were no signs of oil seeping into the DuPage River, which lies just 1,200 feet away from the derailed train. Plainfield firefighters used foam to contain the leaked oil.

“We believe by all standards that there is no measurable risk to the community,” Plainfield police Chief John Konopek said at a news conference Saturday morning.