Spilled Coal Pollutes Wisconsin River Following Derailment

A train derailment Sunday afternoon on a bridge crossing the Black River in Wisconsin dumped tons of coal in the water, leaving authorities to speculate about potential environmental damage.

Thirteen cars of a Union Pacific freight jumped the tracks in Oostburg, Wisconsin.

Collecting the damaged cars and repairing the tracks was accomplished Monday, cleanup of the spilled coal is expected to take longer.

A DNR spokesperson told WISN 12 News that a railroad contractor “is working on mitigation efforts to prevent migration of coal particulates further into area waterways.”

Short term coal dust could be a potential issue in river water, the spokesperson said.