09:55 AM PDT on Monday, June 19, 2006

Associated Press

MISSOULA, Mont. - Five railroad cars bound for Washington state derailed on a Montana Rail Link track and leaked fuel near downtown Missoula, Montana, yesterday.

It happened at about 5:30 a.m. Company spokeswoman Lynda Frost says the derailment was caused by a broken track.

Two of the cars were carrying ethanol fuel, and one car leaked nearly ten-thousand gallons of fuel on the company’s rail yard. Fire, police and hazardous materials teams responded, and covered the spill with foam to keep it from igniting.

Frost says crews will likely have to remove the soil.

Several homes in the area were temporarily evacuated.

No one was injured. The train originated in Laurel, Montana, and was headed to Pasco, Washington.