Train derailment in East Austin nearly misses apartment complex

AUSTIN, Texas - Seven freight cars, some filled with gravel, fell off the tracks early Tuesday morning in East Austin.

The train crash came close to smashing into the E6 Apartments. The impact was a jolt for residents like Nick Moreau.

"I actually felt it when I heard it, and that's what woke me up. Initially, I was sleeping in my bed, and this train normally comes around every morning at 3:30 a.m. on the dot, and around 3:45 a.m. was on. I was actually like my bed shaking the whole apartment, and it just sounded like a huge bang, like a bunch of us thought it was all the dumpsters being taken out at once," said Moreau.

It was a scary wake-up call for Austin resident Kay Tapia.

"We went out on our balcony, and I opened the balcony door and there was just a train like this, the top of the train right next to our balcony door," said Tapia.

Tapia just moved into the E6 Apartments a few months ago. She’s used to hearing the freight train at night and the loud screeches and shaking in her apartment, but she says this felt different.

"My partner got up and looked out the window, and he was like, that train is turned over," said Tapia.

The fright train is operated by WatCo, a transportation company based in Kansas. The tracks are owned by CapMetro, but maintained by Herzog, and FOX 7 was told the transit agency will not be stuck with the repair bill. 

Investigators spent the morning clearing the wreckage and trying to determine the cause of the derailment. The weight limit on this section of track, for freight cars, is 286,000 pounds, according to a spokesperson with CapMetro.

There were no hazardous materials, and no one was hurt.

RELATED: Train derailment in East Austin; CapMetro rail service disrupted

Traffic was detoured off 7th St. and two others around the derailment. The cars traveling on 7th were detoured, even though the rail cars blocking the roadway did not jump the track. The problem was getting a WatCo crew to East Austin to uncouple the cars and move them away from the roadway. 

Shaun Jordan watched the clean-up from his balcony. It’s a familiar sight. This is the third derailment along these tracks since he moved in.

"Well, I'm glad that it was rocks, and they ship gravel through here all night. But there are cars that look like they carry oil or chemicals or something there. They're liquid containers. And I'm just happy they spilled rocks this time," said Jordan.

"I would say it is mildly terrifying. I mean, we feel very lucky and very glad that everyone is very safe, especially ourselves. I mean, it was so close. So it's just kind of terrifying to think about that aspect of it. But at the end of the day, we do love our apartment," Tapia said.

The reoccurring crisis on the rails is frustrating, but Jordan did have high praise for the utility crews who arrived. Austin Energy posted pictures of a utility pole that was knocked down by the crash.

Power was cut off to 82 customers, but the lights came back on around 10 a.m. It wasn't soon enough for the UT Elementary Charter School. Classes were canceled. It was picture day for students like Joseph Delgado, who was disappointed about not being in class. Joseph, his sister, and their dad walked down to get a look at the wreck.

"I think it's actually kind of sad that it, like flipped," said Avalia Delgado.

The freight train derailment also derailed morning commutes on Metro Rail, in and out of downtown Austin. CapMetro bridged the gap with buses connecting commuters and Red Line trains at the MLK Station.

CapMetro will resume normal services starting Wednesday, Oct. 23.