Nine Train Cars Derail in Downtown Zanesville

Last night around 8 p.m. nine train cars derailed in downtown Zanesville.

The derailment took place on 2nd Street between Main Street and Market Street. The train cars were removed by 5:30 A.M Thursday morning. They are temporarily repairing the the street, and expect the road to be permanently fixed within five or six days. As for the cause of the derailment, it will take some more investigation.

“My understanding is that it’s still under inspection. My experience has always been that weight and speed and age of ties all factor into derailments. But we’ll have to see what the government officials inform us as to what they think the root causes were,” Zanesville Mayor Don Mason said.

The Public Utilities Commission, the Zanesville Police, Firefighters, and Street officials have all been involved in the repair efforts. One might expect an event like this might put the streets out of use for some time, but fortunately for Zanesville residents, that is not the case.

“I would expect by later today, Thursday, that people would be able to traverse Y Bridge and Main Street and of course, Market. But again, there will be times where asphalting is taking place where there will be the normal delays and waits based on asphalting like you do…like any other construction project,” Mason added.

Thankfully, there were no reported injuries surrounding the derailment and the area where the event took place incurred minimal property damage as well.