STUTTGART, Ark. – The communities of Stuttgart and Ulm were shocked by the damage that wind and one train could cause Friday evening.
“I’ve never seen this before, I’ve lived here all my life and I’ve never seen a derailment,” says Vera Doepell.
Crews respond to a train derailment on Highway 79 northeast of Stuttgart
Stuttgart Airport reports that wind speeds of up to 100 km/h could occur during Friday night’s storms. Officials on the scene confirmed that straight-line winds caused the derailment.
Doepell and her husband were driving home after shopping for the holiday weekend and having their barbecue party when their son called to tell them about the derailment.
Moments later, they arrived on the scene and discovered they had to take a different way home.
“You know there’s a car across the highway,” Doepell said as she called 911.
Severe storms and hail hit Arkansas on Friday evening
A rail car blocked Highway 79 at the Arkansas, Prairie and Monrow county lines.
The incident involved several train cars, but no injuries were reported.
“When it derailed, it broke apart and the train ended up on the highway,” said Jerry Lee, chief of the Ulm Fire Department.
Central Arkansas is experiencing downed trees and power outages after a Saturday morning storm
First Responders and specialist crews work together to clear the incident, with significant progress being made less than 24 hours later.
“It’s a small community. Moments like this make us all come together,” Lee said.
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