UPDATE, June 18, 2024, 12 p.m.: Union Pacific Railroad has provided the White County Sheriff’s Office with an official statement on Monday’s hazardous spill near McRae, Ark.
Above: Screenshot of a statement from Union Pacific Railroad (via the White County Sheriff’s Office’s Facebook page) regarding Monday’s incident near McRae, Ark.
UPDATE, June 17, 2024, 4 p.m.: State Highway 367 near McRae has reopened after a hazardous spill involving a train, according to the Arkansas Department of Transportation.
UPDATE, June 17, 2024, 1 p.m.: A section of Arkansas Highway 367 near McRae in White County was blocked in all directions Monday after an incident in which a train spilled nitrogen oxide (corrected, June 18, 2024: the spill was nitric acid; the Arkansas Department of Transportation originally noted the spill was “nitrogen oxide”).
As of 1 p.m. Monday, authorities were still working on the scene, but according to the White County 911/Dispatch Center, there has been no evacuation in place at this time. The Dispatch Center said the White County Office of Emergency Management has a perimeter set up at the site.
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EARLIER:
According to the White County 911/Dispatch Center, everyone within a mile north and south of the train tracks between Beebe and McRae is being asked to evacuate the area after a HAZMAT situation with a train on Monday morning.
According to the post: “There has been a HAZMAT situation with a train. We have all units working on getting this handled. If you are in the area and you start to feel sick, try to find somewhere to get fresh air. If the fresh air is not heling, call 911.”
White River Now will follow this story as more information becomes available.
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