Interstate near Arizona-New Mexico line reopens after train derailment as lingering fuel burns off

LUPTON, Ariz.– Interstate 40 was reopened in both directions Sunday as firefighters continued to monitor a controlled burn of remaining fuel from a freight train derailment near the Arizona-New Mexico state line, a local fire chief said.

Previous evacuation orders have now been lifted.

“It’s all under control,” said Fire Chief Lawrence Montoya Jr. from McKinley County, New Mexico. “Our hazmat team is on scene, along with our highly trained firefighters.”

Montoya, the incident commander on the scene, said controlled burns were still consuming remaining fuel on some cars. He said no one was injured in Friday’s derailment of the BNSF Railway train near Lupton, Ariz., which occurred on the New Mexico side of the tracks, or during the subsequent firefighting operation.

For a time, the eastbound lanes of Interstate 40 were closed around Holbrook, Arizona, and the westbound lanes of the highway were closed near Grants, New Mexico.

The New Mexico Department of Transportation said Sunday that motorists should continue to expect heavy smoke in some areas, as well as long delays that may require them to seek alternate routes or postpone their trip to the area.

Montoya said firefighters continued to remove debris from the area and track repairs were underway.

The cause of the derailment remained under investigation Sunday, Montoya said. He said investigators from the National Transportation Safety Board and other federal agencies were on the scene.