Third grain train derailed

A third grain train has derailed near Montesano, with 11 cars off the track, according to Micheal Williams of Genesee & Wyoming.

“I’ve never seen anything like it,” Williams said of the three derailments in two weeks. “All of the senior management of the Pacific region is on the way, so we’ll get to the bottom of whatever is going on.”

The train derailed sometime around 4 p.m. at the Devonshire Road crossing near Central Park drive. Williams said the track was just inspected yesterday by a geometry car.

“It’s a sophisticated, high-tech piece of equipment that tests the track’s geometry,” he explained. “Since it was just done yesterday they’re probably just looking at the data today.”

Eight cars are overturned, three are upright. No main crossings are blocked.

A train passing in front of Walmart in Aberdeen derailed May 9, leaving seven cars blocking an entrance to the store and knocking the track out of commission until late yesterday afternoon, Williams said. Crews were still working today on additional repairs, but the track was reportedly open.

Before that, five grain cars came off the tracks at South Washington Street just south of State Street. The railroad found that was caused by soft ground after heavy rains.

The cause of the most recent derailments is not yet known.