Residents of Swalwell began re-entry to their community Tuesday afternoon after the Local State of Emergency was lifted. The Local State of Emergency was created on Monday afternoon when a train collided with a B-Train tractor-trailer unit carrying propane.
A collision involving a train and a B-Train propane truck took place at 2:55 p.m on March 9, at the railroad crossing located along Railway Avenue in the hamlet of Swalwell. 58 homes in Swalwell and the surrounding area were evacuated.
Crews remained on scene overnight, working to contain the incident. As of 3 a.m., the train involved in the incident was cleared from the scene. The first of the impacted propane vessels was repaired and the product offloaded.
At noon, the offloading of the second unit was underway and at 2:30 p.m. on Tuesday authorities have declared Swalwell safe for re-entry, and the State of Local Emergency has been lifted. Crews have been performing field test screenings of the air quality throughout the day, and levels remain at zero. Routes are in place for residents to follow back to the hamlet.
“Thank you to our First Responders for their decisive action, and to the public for allowing them to work to their full potential. Your actions have helped to make our community safer, which remains our number one goal,” states a press release from Kneehill County. “Thank you also to the many community members and organizations who reached out and offered support during the event.”
