Freight train derails at Station Square T station in Pittsburgh, no injuries reported

Norfolk Southern Corp. said it could be until Wednesday until the seven cars of a freight train that derailed near Pittsburgh's Station Square Sunday afternoon can be cleared from the tracks.

Contractors using heavy construction cranes will rerail and clear the derailed cars and containers, said Jonathan Glass, a Norfolk Southern spokesman. No hazardous materials were involved in the crash, Glass said.

No one was injured when the freight train derailed at 1:13 p.m. and several cars tumbled off the tracks and down a hillside, several feet from light-rail riders waiting on the platform at the Station Square "T” station.

"Miraculously, no casualties,” Port Authority CEO Katherine Kelleman said. "The train derailed after our train inbound had just cleared the station.”

As soon as she heard the crash, a Port Authority of Allegheny County fare collector identified only as "Princess” ran out of her booth and ushered riders on both sides of the platform to safety, Kelleman said.

"We owe her a debt,” Kelleman said. "She kept everyone calm and directed them to a better place to wait.”

All inbound and outbound rail service to Pittsburgh was suspended following the derailment, according to the Port Authority.

The Smithfield Street Bridge was closed, and the public was asked to stay away from the area.

According to city spokesman Chris Togneri that bridge will remain closed through Monday's morning commute. West Carson Street was also closed and is expected to remain so while the train cars are removed, which according to Togneri could take up to 72 hours.

The westbound rail cars involved in the derailment were bound for Chicago, transporting shipping containers carrying mainly consumer goods that included housewares, food products, beverages, and other common household products found in retail shopping stores, Glass said.The train, 57 loaded intermodal cars, was headed to Chicago.

Officials said Sunday afternoon it was too early to discuss details of how the derailment happened or just how close it was to affecting people on the platforms below the freight tracks.

Some of the fallen and smashed box cars remained "very unstable” shortly after 4 p.m., after the derailment alongside East Carson Street near the Smithfield Street Bridge, Department of Public Safety spokesman Chris Togneri said.

Officials can tell "that the train has snapped the beam, and we don't know the damage we can anticipate to our rail underneath,” Kelleman said.

A strong smell emanating from the site can be attributed not to any harmful chemicals but rather to the cases of Listerine mouthwash that were among the damaged freight, Togneri said.

A stretch of East Carson Street is closed to cars and service was halted on the Mon Incline.

Port Authority officials are providing shuttle buses to take riders from Pittsburgh's Downtown T stations to South Side Junction.

"We know the (Three Rivers) Regatta is winding up, and we have a Pirates game,” said Kellman, "so we are getting announcements at the platforms informing people there's a service disruption.”

Additional staff were put in place to direct T riders to shuttle buses.

Service will be disrupted at least for a few days, though Port Authority plans to restart service on the former Brown Line near Warrington Avenue in the meantime.

Commuters who take the T into the city through the South Side should anticipate delays the rest of the week.

"Your train trip will take longer or we will have a bus shuttle, but we will still get you to work,” said Kelleman. She noted that she will be among the affected transit riders when she heads to her office Monday.

The incident is under investigation by Port Authority as well as railroad officials.

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Natasha Lindstrom is a Tribune-Review staff writer. You can contact Natasha at 412-380-8514, nlindstrom@tribweb.com or via Twitter @NewsNatasha.