No injuries or hazardous spills in 9-car train derailment in northern Minnesota, officials say

COOK, Minn. (AP) — No one was injured and no hazardous material spilled when nine Canadian National Railway cars derailed in northern Minnesota, officials there said.

The derailment happened just before 8:30 p.m. Monday in a rural, unpopulated area about 6 miles (10 kilometers) north of Cook, the St. Louis County Sheriff’s Office said in a news release. Sheriff’s deputies and firefighters who responded found four of the derailed cars had remained upright, while five others had tipped over.

Two of the cars contained liquefied propane and butane, but none appeared to have spilled, the sheriff’s office said.

Canadian National Railway did not immediately respond Tuesday morning to requests seeking comment on the cause of the derailment or when the line would reopen to rail traffic.

The derailment comes less than two months after a Canadian Pacific Kansas City train derailed in the northwest corner of the state near the Canadian border. In that May 31 incident, 24 cars went off the tracks, but there were no reported spills or injuries.

Railroad safety has been a concern nationwide after several derailments in recent months, including a fiery February train wreck near East Palestine, Ohio. Congress is considering several new safety requirements for freight railroads, which have already committed to making some changes in their operations. Federal regulators have also urged railroads to take additional precautions to prevent derailments.