​​This information is preliminary and subject to change.

Release date 5 August 2025

​On July 5, 2025, about 2:26 p.m. local time, southbound Illinois Central Railroad (ICR) mixed freight train M30271-05 derailed 22 railcars on the Yazoo subdivision at milepost 97.63 in rural Glendora, Mississippi.[1] One of the derailed railcars, a Department of Transportation Specification 111A100W1 tank car loaded with the hazardous material benzene, breached and caught fire.[2] There were no reported fatalities or injuries, and about 160 people were evacuated in a 1 mile radius of the accident. ICR estimated damages to be about $1.5 million. At the time of the accident, visibility conditions were clear, and the weather was 90°F with no precipitation.

​The crew of train M30271-05 consisted of one engineer and one conductor. The train departed Memphis, Tennessee, around 11:08 a.m., destined for Baton Rouge, Louisiana, and was a key train composed of 139 railcars (59 loaded railcars and 80 empties, including 11 residue cars), with 23 hazardous materials tank cars.[3] Of the 23 hazardous materials railcars, 1 was loaded with compressed gas (refrigerant), 16 were loaded with benzene, and 6 were loaded with petroleum. The train was traveling about 29 mph on a right-hand curve near milepost 97.63 when it experienced a train-initiated emergency brake application and derailed railcars 29 through 50.[4]

​A few days before the accident, on July 2, 2025, an ICR autonomous track inspection vehicle noted two superelevation track defects in the area of the derailment, which ICR reported were addressed by a track surfacing unit on July 3.[5] In accordance with operational procedure, ICR subsequently placed a 10-mph speed restriction on that segment of track for the next two trains and then raised it to 30 mph on July 3.[6] At the time of the accident, the speed restriction of 30 mph was still in place for the segment of track on which the accident occurred. ​

Local emergency responders and ICR hazardous materials responders extinguished the fire around 11:30 p.m. on July 5, and the evacuation order was lifted shortly thereafter. ICR contractors removed about 25,000 gallons of product from the breached benzene tank car. The product included both the material itself and water used in firefighting activities.

While on scene, the National Transportation Safety Board reviewed data from locomotive event recorders and inward- and outward-facing image recorders, inspected train equipment and track structures, reviewed ICR’s engineering standards and procedures, and completed interviews. 

The investigation is ongoing. Future investigative activity will focus on ICR’s procedures related to track inspections, engineering defect mitigation, employee training and testing, and emergency response. derailment, which CN reported were addressed by a track surfacing unit on July 3.[5] In accordance with operational procedure, CN subsequently placed a 10 mph speed restriction on that segment of track for the next two trains and then raised it to 30 mph on July 3.[6] At the time of the accident, the speed restriction of 30 mph was still in place for the segment of track on which the accident occurred. ​​

Parties to the investigation include:

• the Federal Railroad Administration; 
• the Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration; 
• Canadian National Railway;
• the International Association of Sheet Metal, Air, Rail and Transportation Workers; 
• the Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers and Trainmen; and 
• the Brotherhood of Maintenance of Way Employes Division.[7]