(COLUMBUS, Mont.) — Cleanup is continuing at the site where a train carrying potentially hazardous materials derailed into the Yellowstone River in Montana, according to officials.
The incident left multiple tankers in the Yellowstone River and decimated the railroad portion of the Yellowstone Twin River Bridges in Stillwater County, Montana. Officials have not indicated whether the derailment caused the bridge to collapse or whether the collapse precipitated the derailment.
Three of the railcars that derailed were carrying hot asphalt, and four were carrying molten sulfur, KC Williams, the director of Emergency Management for Yellowstone County, told ABC News.
Two impacted railcars were also carrying sodium hydro sulfate, a corrosive substance, but those substances did not enter the river, according to Montana Rail Link.
The site work and remediation that began Saturday evening continued into Sunday, Montana Rail Link Public Information Officer Andy Garland said in a statement. Track repairs have been made, enabling access to begin cleanup of the affected cars, Garland said.
Transloading of the sodium hydrosulfide car closest to the river was underway on Sunday morning, Garland said. The car remains safely out of the water and there has been no release involving this material.
“We continue to closely monitor all releases involving molten sulfur and asphalt and mitigating any impacts to the site and surrounding area,” Garland said. “Both of these substances harden and solidify quickly when interacting with water and modeling suggests that significant downstream movement of material is unlikely.”
Water sampling also began on Saturday and will continue throughout the incident, Garland said.
Drinking water in Yellowstone County is not currently affected, Williams said.
“The safety of our employees and the public remains our top priority,” MRL said. “We are committed to addressing any potential impacts to the area as a result of this incident and working to understand the reasons behind the accident.”
Montana Rail Link said in a statement Saturday that the incident happened around 6:45 a.m. local time while the train was traveling westbound near the town of Reed Point. Several cars remain in the river, including several hazmat cars, the railroad operator said. No crew members were injured in the incident according to MRL.
The cause of the derailment is under investigation, the operator said, with MRL personnel and first responders onsite. Montana Disaster and Emergency Services and the Environmental Protection Agency’s National Response Center have been notified, MLR said.
“We continue to work closely with MT DEQ, EPA, and other local, state, and federal partners in our cleanup, removal and restoration efforts as a unified command,” Garland said on Sunday. “Montana Rail Link remains committed to addressing any potential impacts to the area as a result of this incident.”
Local residents told ABC News that the river was running high after heavy rainfall over the last month, including a storm the prior evening.
“It’s completely muddy, so it’s bringing a lot of material down with it,” said John Counter, who lives roughly two miles from the collapsed bridge. “It’s running full banks right now.”
Counter added that the bridge included a portion for car traffic, which was removed recently. Yellowstone Public Radio reported in 2021 that the section of the bridge was removed after erosion made it a risk to the public.
The incident at Twin Bridges Road between the towns of Reed Point and Columbus has led to the closure of some public access points to the Yellowstone and Stillwater Rivers, the Montana Department of Fish, Wildlife and Parks said Saturday.
State officials are advising the public to avoid parts of the Yellowstone River due to “potential contaminants.”
While there is no immediate threat to Yellowstone County, the sheriff’s office said, the incident left some residents concerned about the vulnerability of their chief water supply.
“All of our water comes through the river for our wells and our irrigation and everything,” Couch told ABC News. “So it gets a little concerning when you have toxic stuff coming into your wells.”
(NEW YORK) — Temperatures are still soaring in Texas, and that pattern won’t be shifting anytime soon. The heat isn’t just contained to the Lone Star State, it’s now expanding to include eight states in total.
Nearly 50 million Americans are under Heat Alerts from Arizona to Arkansas, as heat indices top 100 degrees in dozens of cities.
Over the past four days, there have been more than 600 severe weather reports as an active pattern continues. Friday night, there were reports of softball-sized hail in both Nebraska and Texas, as well as 26 tornado reports.
There are still severe thunderstorms rolling across the plains, with a Severe Thunderstorm Watch in effect for parts of South Dakota, Nebraska and Iowa Saturday morning.
These storms will continue to head east and weaken slightly as the morning goes on, but there is redevelopment expected Saturday afternoon across parts of the Midwest. Large hail, damaging winds and scattered tornadoes are all possible.
(SAN ANTONIO) — Murder charges were filed Friday against three members of the San Antonio Police Department after they allegedly shot and killed a woman in her apartment, the department said.
Melissa Perez, 46, was shot and killed by the officers after they responded to a call about a woman destroying property, police said.
The officers — Sgt. Alfred Flores, Officer Eleazar Alejandro and Officer Nathaniel Villalobos — were suspended following a review of the shooting, the department said in a statement late Friday.
Their “actions are not consistent with SAPD’s policy training and they placed themselves in a situation where they used deadly force which was not reasonable given all the circumstances as we now understand them,” Chief William McManus said during a press conference.
The officers had been dispatched at about 12:27 a.m. to an apartment complex on the city’s southwest side after a report of vandalism, Lt. Michelle Ramos said in a video released by the department. A woman was said to have “cut wires to an alarm panel” for the apartment complex, Ramos said.
Officers arriving at the scene made contact with Perez outside and identified her, Ramos said, providing voice-over narration for body camera video from the officers.
“It appears that Ms. Perez was having a mental health crisis,” McManus said. “Officers attempted to get her to walk toward their patrol car, but she ran back to her apartment and she locked the door.”
The officers had determined that the cutting of the alarm wires was a felony, McManus said.
Video released by the department appears to show an officer then climbing over a railing onto the patio of Perez’s first-floor apartment. The officer in the video attempts to open the door.
Then, “attempting to arrest the woman, officers open the screen to the window that was already open,” Ramos said.
Perez then allegedly picked up a hammer, Ramos said. The officer then drew his gun, she said.
“The woman, while inside her home, threw a glass candle at the officers, striking an officer in the arm, causing minor injuries,” Ramos said.
Perez and the officers then “communicated” through the open window for about a half-hour, according to police. One of the officers then climbed back over the railing toward the door, Ramos said. Perez then allegedly smashed a window on the door with the hammer, police said.
“One officer fired multiple rounds toward the woman, but it did not appear she was struck by the gunfire,” Ramos said.
Perez then “moved away” before returning to the door “with the hammer in her hand,” Ramos said.
“At this time, two other officers shot toward the woman — along with the first officer who fired the first round of gunshots,” Ramos said. “The woman was struck by the gunfire and later pronounced deceased by EMS. No one, other than the woman, was injured by the gunfire.”
(MOSCOW) — Russian President Vladimir Putin was briefed Saturday on an “attempted armed rebellion,” the Kremlin said, after the leader of the mercenary Wagner Group claimed control of military facilities in Rostov-on-Don, a key Russian city near the Ukrainian border.
Forces loyal to Yevgeny Prigozhin, the mercenary leader, were traveling north toward Moscow in the “most significant challenge to the Russian state in recent times,” the U.K. Ministry of Defense said on Saturday.
Jun 24, 1:12 PM EDT
Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff cancels trip to Israel, Jordan due to situation in Russia
Gen. Mark Milley, the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, has canceled his planned trip to Israel and Jordan due to the situation in Russia. The trip was to have begun Saturday.
Milley also spoke with his Ukrainian counterpart, Commander-in-Chief of the Ukrainian Armed Forces Gen. Valerii Zaluzhnyi.
“They discussed the unprovoked and ongoing Russian invasion of Ukraine and exchanged perspectives and assessments. The Chairman reaffirmed unwavering support for Ukraine’s sovereignty and territorial integrity,” according to Joint Staff spokesperson Col. Dave Butler.
The Pentagon said Department of Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin is monitoring the ongoing situation in Russia and will continue to be briefed on any significant developments.
Jun 24, 12:47 PM EDT
Moscow suspends schools, events until July 1
Andrey Vorobyov, the governor of the Moscow region, has suspended mass events outdoors and at educational institutions until July 1.
Moscow Mayor Sergey Sobyanin urged residents to refrain from traveling around the city. Monday was also declared a non-working day for the city. Sobyanin said that a counter-terrorism regime was declared in Moscow and that the situation was difficult.
Jun 24, 12:34 PM EDT
Biden speaks with leaders of France, Germany, UK about ‘situation in Russia’
President Joe Biden spoke with French President Emmanuel Macron, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz and U.K. Prime Minister Rishi Sunak about the developments in Russia.
Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris were also briefed by their national security team on the developments in Russia and will continue to receive updates throughout the day, the White House said Saturday.
Jun 24, 10:11 AM EDT
Wagner troop column 300 miles south of Moscow, Russian media says
The governor of the Lipetsk region, which is about 300 miles south of Moscow, said a column of Wagner troops has been spotted in the region, Russian state media reports.
Jun 24, 9:15 AM EDT
What is the Wagner Group?
The Wagner Group is a private military organization run by Yevgeny Prigozhin, a longtime ally of Russian leader Vladimir Putin, with tens of thousands of fighters, according to U.S. officials.
Earlier this year, the U.S. labeled the group a “significant transnational criminal organization” and levied new sanctions, while human rights observers this week said they suspected Wagner fighters were linked to the mass killing of people in Mali last year.
Government reports, statements from U.S. officials and insights from experts, as well as other sources, shed light on the Wagner group’s history and goals, its alleged wrongdoings and its importance to Russia — in Ukraine and elsewhere in the world.
Jun 24, 7:24 AM EDT
NATO monitoring Russian situation, official says
A NATO representative said the alliance was watching what was happening in Russia on Saturday.
“We are monitoring the situation,” spokesperson Oana Lungescu said.
Jun 24, 6:31 AM EDT
‘Operational combat’ underway north of Rostov, official says
A governor of the Voronezh region, about 300 miles south of Moscow, says Russia’s armed forces are conducting “operational combat operations” there as part of “counter terrorism operation.”
Earlier the region’s government reported a column of Wagner Group fighters was moving through the region, an area between Rostov-on-Don and Moscow.
“In the bounds of the counterterrorist operation on the territory of the Voronezh region, the armed forces of the Russian Federation are conducting necessary operational combat operations,” the official said. “We will inform further about the development of the situation.”
Jun 24, 6:03 AM EDT
Russia in ‘so much chaos that no lie can hide it,’ Zelenskyy says
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said Russia appeared to be suffering “full-scale weakness” after the Wagner Group mercenaries said they’d taken hold of a key Russian city.
“Russia used propaganda to mask its weakness and the stupidity of its government. And now there is so much chaos that no lie can hide it,” he said on Twitter.
Jun 24, 5:47 AM EDT
Prigozhin responds to Putin, says Wagner not going to surrender
The Wagner Group’s Yevgeny Prigozhin responded to Russian President Vladimir Putin’s calling him a “traitor,” by saying he will not surrender or turn back.
“Putin was deeply mistaken about the betrayal. We are patriots of our homeland, we fought and are fighting,” Prighozin said in an audio message. “No one is going to turn around at the request of the president, the FSB or anyone else, because we do not want the country to live longer in corruption, deception and bureaucracy.”
Prigozhin accused Russia’s military of targeting a Wagner column with helicopters and jets.
Jun 24, 5:37 AM EDT
Chechen leader backs Putin, says forces moving into ‘zones of tension’
The powerful head of Chechnya, the semi-independent Russian region, Ramzan Kadyrov, said on Saturday he supported President Vladimir Putin.
Kadyrov saiud he fully backs Putin and called Wagner Group leader Yevgeny Prigozhin’s actions “treacherous.”
Kadyrov has tens of thousands of heavily armed fighters. He said his forces are already moving to “zones of tension.”
It raises prospect of Chechen forces fighting with Wagner Group troops.
Kadyrov has previously been friendly with Prigozhin — his coming out in support of Putin is a boost for Putin, but also raises prospect of serious clashes in Russia.
Jun 24, 5:27 AM EDT
Next 48 hours ‘will define’ Russia, Zelenskyy advisor says
Russian leaders are “now choosing which side they are on,” an advisor to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said Saturday.
“The next 48 hours will define the new status of Russia,” Mykhailo Podolyak said on Twitter. “Either a full-fledged Civil War, or a negotiated Transit of Power, or a temporary respite before the next phase of the downfall of the Putin regime.”
He added, “A deafening ‘elite’ silence is in Russia so far…”
Jun 24, 3:52 AM EDT
Uprising ‘significant challenge’ to Russian state, UK says
Members of the mercenary Wagner Group have begun moving north “almost certainly aiming to get to Moscow,” in what amounts to the “most significant challenge to the Russian state in recent times,” the U.K. Ministry of Defense said on Saturday.
“Over the coming hours, the loyalty of Russia’s security forces, and especially the Russian National Guard, will be key to how the crisis plays out,” the ministry said on Twitter.
Jun 24, 3:25 AM EDT
Putin: Wagner Group moves are ‘stab in the back’
Russian President Vladimir Putin said moves taken by Wagner Group leader Yevgeny Prigozhin, a longtime ally, to bring his troops into a key Russian city amounted to a “stab in the back.”
Putin didn’t mention Prigozhin by name, but said that “necessary orders have been given” to defend Russia in a recorded address aired on Russian television on Saturday.
“Actions that divide our unity are in essence defeatism before one’s own people,” he said. “This is a stab in the back of our country and our people.”
Jun 24, 3:12 AM EDT
Kremlin briefs Putin on ‘attempted armed rebellion’
Russian President Vladimir Putin has been briefed by the country’s security agencies about what was referred to as an “attempted armed rebellion,” according to Russia’s state-run media.
The late-night statement from Putin’s spokesman suggested that the Kremlin considered Wagner Group’s move into Rostov-on-Don, a key Russian city close to the border with Ukraine, to be a “rebellion.”
Wagner’s founder Yevgeny Prigozhin in an audio message on Friday claimed his forces would now punish Russia’s defense minister and chief of general staff, telling other units to stand down and not offer resistance.
“Special services, law enforcement agencies, namely the Ministry of Defense, the FSB, the Ministry of Internal Affairs, Rosgvardiya, in round-the-clock mode, constantly report to the president on the measures taken in the context of the implementation of the instructions previously given to him,” Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov said on Saturday.
Jun 24, 2:42 AM EDT
Wagner Group claims control over Rostov military facilities, airport
Yevgeny Prigozhin, leader of the Wagner Group, said on Saturday that the headquarters of the Southern Military District and all military facilities in Rostov-on-Don were under his control.
Prigozhin in a video demanded that Kremlin bring him Chief of the General Staff Valery Gerasimov and Sergei Shoigu.
He also threatened in the video that he would go to Moscow.
“We will destroy anyone who stands in our way,” he said in one of a series of video and audio recordings posted on social media.
He added, “We are moving forward and will go until the end.”
(COLUMBUS, Mont.) — A bridge that crosses the Yellowstone River in Montana collapsed, sending portions of a freight train that was traveling over it into the water below, state officials said.
Multiple tanker cars were damaged and are leaking petroleum products near the Yellowstone River, the Yellowstone County Sheriff’s Office said.
The derailment into the Yellowstone River near Twin Bridges Road between Reed Point and Columbus has led to the closure of parts of the Yellowstone and Stillwater Rivers, the Montana Department of Fish, Wildlife and Parks said Saturday.
State officials are advising the public to avoid parts of the Yellowstone River due to “potential contaminants.”
There is no immediate threat to Yellowstone County, the sheriff’s office said.
This is a developing story. Check back for updates.
(ROMEOVILLE, Ill.) — At least two people have been wounded in a shooting at Scene75 Entertainment Center complex Friday evening in Romeoville, Illinois, and police are investigating, village officials said.
The two injured people were taken to the hospital, officials said.
This is a developing story. Please check back for updates.
L.S. Dunes, the band featuring My Chemical Romance‘s Frank Iero and Coheed and Cambira‘s Travis Stever, has released a new song called “Benadryl Subreddit.”
As Iero explains, the track’s unique title “comes from a conversation that [MCR bassist] Mikey Way and I were having one night on tour about sober guys finding out legal ways of getting high without doing actual drugs and messing with their sobriety.”
You can listen to “Benadryl Subreddit” now via digital outlets and watch its accompanying video streaming now on YouTube.
L.S. Dunes also includes Circa Survive vocalist Anthony Green, and bassist Tim Payne and drummer Tucker Rule of Thursday. The group released their debut album, Past Lives, in November 2022.
On June 16, The Offspring released a vinyl reissue of their 2008 album, Rise and Fall, Rage and Grace, in honor of its 15th anniversary. Apparently, though, it wasn’t as explicit as the original.
In a statement posted to Facebook, the band writes that they were “horrified” to learn that the reissue includes “clean” versions of the songs “You’re Gonna Go Far, Kid,” “Nothingtown” and “Stuff Is Messed Up.”
“Any fan of The Offspring knows that we enjoy cussing on occasion, because sometimes there’s just no substitute for a properly placed curse word,” the statement reads.
“We have no idea how this s*** happened,” The Offspring says of the mix-up. “We didn’t even know there was a clean version!”
Along with the label Round Hill Records, The Offspring is “working to fix this bulls*** ASAP.”
“We will let you all know how and when this will be remedied but rest assured, god******, that it will be f****** fixed!” they add. “Thank you all for our patience, and please accept our deepest f****** apologies.”
Sara Bareilles is set to headline two small club shows in New York to benefit Rockwood Music Hall, a club on the Lower East Side where she played in the early days of her career.
“In 2007, I had the privilege of playing one of my first career shows at Rockwood Music Hall on the Lower East Side,” she shares on Instagram. “This venue has always been a symbol of the determination and resilience of New York’s aspiring musicians. Today I am reaching out to each and every one of you, because it is at risk of closing down.”
Sara will headline shows on Friday, June 30, at 7 p.m. and 9:30 p.m. as part of a Preserve Rockwood campaign, which will feature shows throughout the summer by such artists as Ingrid Michaelson, Elle King and more.
She adds, “Rockwood Music Hall has provided a launching pad for countless successful musicians – now it’s our turn to give back. Together, let’s preserve the future of music and protect this invaluable space for generations to come.”
Information on the campaign and how to get tickets can be found at preserverockwood.com.
BET is ending Busta Rhymes‘ 12-year award drought. At the BET Awards 2023, the rapper will be honored with a Lifetime Achievement Award, his first trophy since bringing home wins for “Look at Me Now” with Chris Brown and Lil’ Wayne in 2011. The award recognizes his impact as a rapper, producer and songwriter in the game.
To help celebrate his legacy, BET has tapped friends Swizz Beatz and Coi Leray to honor Busta. BIA, who is featured on his new song “Beach Ball,” will also be part of the tribute.
BET Awards 2023 will air Sunday, June 25, featuring performances from Doechii, GloRilla, Coco Jones, Ice Spice, Latto and Lil Uzi Vert. The event will celebrate the 50 years of hip-hop with help from DJ D-Nice, Jeezy, YG, E-40, Remy Ma, Chief Keef, the Ying Yang Twins, Tyga, Trina and Soulja Boy, as well ashonor the late Tina Turner with a tribute performed by Patti LaBelle.
“Tina was a trailblazer and someone I have a tremendous amount of respect for because of all that she overcame and all that she accomplished,” Patti told Rolling Stone in a statement. “She was and is everything! And I am honored that I am able to pay tribute to her in this way.” BET adds the performance will be “nothing short of extraordinary” and will “capture the essence of Turner’s unparalleled legacy.”
BET Awards will air live from the Microsoft Theater in Los Angeles at 8 p.m. ET. It will simulcast on BET, Comedy Central, Logo, MTV and VH1.
