By
The Associated Press
SCOTTSBLUFF, Neb. - About one-third of this city's 15,000 residents were evacuated from their homes early yesterday after a train derailment released a cloud of noxious gas.
The derailment sent 18 cars of a 79-car freight train off the track. Three of the cars were torn open, spilling about 80,000 gallons of the chemical benzene, said Burlington Northern Santa Fe spokesman Steve Forsberg.
No injuries from the derailment or the fumes were reported. The cause of the accident was not known.
More than 1,000 of the evacuees sought shelter at a high school in a neighboring town. Authorities began allowing families to return home shortly after 3 a.m.
Benzene is an aromatic hydrocarbon found in gasoline and other fuels. Short-term exposure to high levels of the chemical can be fatal.
