A train derailed early Wednesday in Pittsfield Township, and roads near its tracks could be closed for days, officials said.
No vehicles were involved and no injuries have been reported, according to investigators.
Township authorities said police and firefighters were called at about 5 a.m to an area along Payeur Road and east of State Street for a report of a derailed train.
They said 13 train cars derailed from the tracks. Officials also said none of the cars were carrying hazardous material.
“Payeur Road between State Street and Marton Road will be closed, as well as Morgan Road between Venture Dr. and Stone School Road,” officials said in a statement. “These closures are expected to remain in place, possibly for several days.”
Police also said that an investigation into the cause of the derailment is underway.
“There is no public safety hazard as a result of this derailment,” officials added.
Kelly Pugh said the loud crashing sounds of the train’s derailment rousted her out of bed at about 3:45 a.m.
“We always hear trains go through here,” said Pugh, whose backyard abuts an easement along the train tracks. “You hear the horns and feel the rumbling a little because the track is close to my house. Normally, you don’t think anything of it.”
But it was different on Wednesday, she said.
“The house was really rumbling, and there was this very loud banging that went on for about a minute before it stopped. It was quiet, but you could still hear the train engine,” Pugh said.
“My dogs went nuts, and I got up to see what happened, but it was pitch-black outside. I went back to bed. But when I got up later, I looked out the back window, and it looked like there was a train car poking into our property. That’s when I realized something major had happened.”
Pugh, a gymnastics coach, said she took a walk to the back of her property at about 10 a.m. to get a closer look. “I thought ‘that’s a lot of wreckage,'” she said. She added that the train knocked over a bunch of trees, but didn’t get anywhere close to the house she rents.
She said she’s lived at her home for only a short time, but has never seen anything like Wednesday’s derailment before. “Well, maybe in movies,” she said.
cramirez@detroitnews.com
@CharlesERamirez
This article originally appeared on The Detroit News: Officials: Train derails in Pittsfield Twp., could close roads for days
Reporting by Charles E. Ramirez, The Detroit News / The Detroit News
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