An explosion and subsequent fire at the world’s largest railyard caused a temporary evacuation on Thursday of the surrounding area in North Platte, Nebraska.
Videos posted on social media showed large plumes of smoke rising from the Bailey Yard, which the local fire department described as “heavy toxic smoke,” in a post on X. People within a one-mile radius were evacuated from the area and US Highway 30 was temporarily shut down.
The fire was extinguished around 5:30 p.m. local time, according to Union Pacific, which runs the facility.
No one was injured in the explosion and the cause of the explosion has not yet been determined, a spokesperson for Union Pacific told US media.
One of the containers involved in the explosion contained perchloric acid which is used for a host of tasks, including cleaning food equipment and in the manufacturing process of LCD screens. It is also used in explosives and is highly volatile when it comes into contact with organic material like paper.
Witnesses said they saw two plumes of smoke, indicating there were likely two explosions.
“The east plume was like black smoke. The west plume was orange smoke, something like I’ve not seen from a fire,” an eyewitness recalled.
Union Pacific employees continued working during the fire in other parts of the facility, according to reports. After the fire was extinguished, the entire facility opened back up.