GARFIELD COUNTY, Colo. — Highway 6 closed late Wednesday morning between Mile Pond Road and Peterson Lane for a passenger train crash with a semi-tanker truck, according to the Garfield County Sheriff's Office.
The driver of the semi-tanker was taken to the hospital for minor injuries, Colorado State Patrol (CSP) said. While CSP did not know the exact number of passengers on board the train at the time of the crash, the agency said no other people were reported hurt.
Six passenger train cars and two locomotives were derailed as a result of the crash, CSP said, while the semi-tanker was split open. It spilled 6,000 gallons of road oil onto the ground. The rail was damaged and split in areas, CSP said. It's expected to be closed for an extended period of time for repairs.
Highway 6 between Mile Pond Road and Peterson Lane is also expected to be closed for a while, CSP said at 12:10 p.m. Wednesday.
The crash happened around nearly three hours earlier at 9:40 a.m. Wednesday. The semi-tanker truck was reportedly on the train tracks when the train collided with it, according to CSP.
In pictures the Garfield County Sheriff's Office posted to social media, "Canyon Spirit" is visible on the side of the train.
Canyon Spirit sent Denver7 the following statement in response to the crash:
"We are aware of an incident has taken place on our Canyon Spirit train this morning, which has caused the train to come to a stop. Our team is responding as quickly as possible. At this point, thankfully, no injuries have been reported by our guests or employees. Our thoughts are with everyone involved.
We will provide additional information as it becomes available. Updates will be posted on our website."
CSP did say local buses would transport the passengers of the train to a safe location.
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