The Oregon Department of Environmental Quality has concluded its emergency response to a train trestle collapse and train derailment in Corvallis after a week of providing on-the-ground guidance to minimize impact to human health and the environment. There continues to be no threat to public health.

DEQ Emergency Response arrived on site shortly after receiving the Oregon Emergency Response System notification of the trestle collapse into the Marys River on Saturday, Jan. 4. DEQ’s role was to provide support to the railroad and their contractors as they worked to figure out how to remove the pelletized urea fertilizer, from the railcars and remove the railcars from the river in ways that minimize impact to the environment. The collapse occurred a half mile upstream of the confluence of the Marys and Willamette Rivers.

DEQ asked contractors to take water samples upstream and downstream of the trestle collapse to evaluate water quality, specifically for ammonia which is created when urea combines with water. Early results indicate no immediate risk to fish. 

“These samples and ongoing visual monitoring confirm there is no immediate high risk to fish,” said Heather Tugaw, DEQ Western Region water quality manager. “We’ll be looking at the full set of sampling results to understand the immediate and long-term impacts to water quality.”

Now that the contents of the railcars hanging over or in the river have been pumped out, DEQ Emergency Response will step back and DEQ’s Water Quality Program to monitor the response.

DEQ Media contacts:
Dylan Darling, public affairs specialist, 541-600-6119, dylan.darling@deq.oregon.gov
Lauren Wirtis, communications manager, 503-568-3295, lauren.wirtis@deq.oregon.gov

P&W Railroad media contact: Tom Ciuba, VP Communications, tom.ciuba@gwrr.com