A train that derailed and crashed into the Marys River in Corvallis was removed by crane over the weekend, a spokesperson for the railroad company said.
A Portland & Western Railroad train went into the river after a trestle collapsed Jan. 4. The train was carrying urea and agricultural fertilizers, spokesperson Tom Ciuba said. Booms were deployed to contain potentially leaked materials, according to a news release from Corvallis Police.
Ciuba said the removal was “slow, but measured,” and the process was completed over the weekend.
Crews remove a train from the Marys River in Corvallis after a trestle collapse caused it to derail.
Crews first vacuumed out agricultural products from the cars near the trestle failure before the cars were lifted and removed by crane, Ciuba said. The car in the river was then lifted and removed.
An investigation focused on what led to the incident is ongoing.
The Oregon Department of Environmental Quality said Friday there was no threat to public health. DEQ emergency response provided on-the-ground supervision for the removal and contractors took water samples up and downstream of the trestle collapse, according to a news release.
The water samples were evaluated for quality and for ammonia, which is created when urea combines with water, the release said. DEQ said early results show there is no immediate risk to fish.
“These samples and ongoing visual monitoring confirm there is no immediate high risk to fish,” Heather Tugaw, DEQ Western Region water quality manager, said in a release. “We’ll be looking at the full set of sampling results to understand the immediate and long-term impacts to water quality.”
Corvallis officials said in a news release after the crash the city’s water intake on the Willamette River is 2 miles upstream from the incident so there is no risk of contamination to the city’s drinking water.
Crews remove a train from the Marys River after a trestle collapse caused it to derail.
Isabel Funk covers breaking news and public safety for the Statesman Journal. Funk can be reached at ifunk@statesmanjournal.com or on X at @isabeldfunk
This article originally appeared on Salem Statesman Journal: Train carrying fertilizers removed from Marys River in Corvallis