The collision in northern Texas left one injured and three missing Tuesday morning.
Two BNSF freight trains collided in northern Texas near the town of Panhandle Tuesday at 8:40 a.m. local time.
The two trains were carrying intermodal cargo on the main line known as the Southern Transcon, which links Los Angeles with Chicago, Bloomberg reported.
BNSF spokesperson Joe Faust said each train carried two crew members and one man jumped out before the collision, according to ABC News.
Faust said the man was being treated at a hospital and the extent of his injuries was not known. Rescue efforts were under way for the other three crew members.
“I don’t know how anyone survived,” said Billy Brown, a farmer in the area who saw a fireball after the collision. “It’s terrible. I’ve seen a number of train wrecks but I’ve never seen one like this.”
Texas Department of Public Safety Sgt. Dan Buesing said the fire was still burning Tuesday afternoon.
Faust noted it’s not clear how fast the trains were going, but the speed limit in that area is 70 mph. It also was not clear why the trains were on the same track.
The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) spokesperson Keith Holloway said the NTSB has launched an investigation and the Federal Railroad Administration said it has investigators on site, according to ABC News.
BNSF and other freight carriers have pledged to meet a 2018 federal deadline for the adoption of positive train control (PTC), which relies on GPS, wireless radio and computers to monitor train positions and automatically slow or stop trains that are in danger of colliding or derailing, ABC News said. Faust said it was not clear whether or not that technology was being used in the trains or along the track.
Berkshire Hathaway-owned BNSF is based out of Fort Worth, Texas and operates in 28 states and three Canadian provinces, according to the Class-I railway’s website.
NEWS FLASH: Two BNSF freight trains collide in Texas
