From Staff Reports

Some 30 cars of a Norfolk Southern train, including several tanker cars which haul potentially dangerous chemicals derailed early Monday morning just outside Montevallo.

The Montevallo Police Department responded to the derailment at about 1:10 a.m. at a railroad intersection on Shelby County Highway 10 between Montevallo and Aldrich.

Lt. Baird Pickett said the first officer on the scene, Chad Lovelady, noticed about 30 train cars derailed.

Pickett said Lovelady

began to wake area residents to let them know what had happened.

Pickett said that Lovelady, at the time not sure whether hazardous materials were involved, began an evacuation procedure.

However, Pickett said Montevallo Fire and Rescue soon arrived on the scene and determined that no hazardous materials were leaking.

The 149-car train was headed south from Mobile to Birmingham, according to media reports, when the derailment occurred at the 26th car.

The cause of the wreck remained under investigation by Norflok Southern on Tuesday.

Pickett said of the 30 derailed train cars, 15 to 20 were carriers of sodium hydroxide.

However, he said, the tankers were empty at the time of the accident.

Attempts to contact Susan Bland of Norfolk Southern were unsuccessful