In the United States, BNSF Railway reopened its main track near Claude, Texas, at 3:03 a.m. CDT on September 14, 29 hours and 44 minutes after the first derailment report.

BNSF locomotive 7436 leads a freight train through Riverside, Illinois
An archive photo from August 2025 shows BNSF locomotive 7436 leading a manifest freight train through Riverside, Illinois. Photo: G Pei / Public domain.

The first report reached the railroad at about 9:19 p.m. CDT on Saturday, September 12. BNSF documented the incident in customer notifications published on its website.

Opening estimate missed by 63 minutes

The first notice, dated September 13, gave no opening time. BNSF said field personnel had responded to assess the site, while the estimated reopening remained undetermined. A follow-up later that day estimated reopening at 2:00 a.m. CDT on Monday. Finally, the closing report recorded the actual reopening at 3:03 a.m. on September 14, 63 minutes after the estimate.

Claude, Texas derailment timeline. All stated times are CDT. Source: BNSF Railway customer notifications, September 13 and 14, 2026.
Date and time Entry in the record
September 12, 9:19 p.m. First report of a derailment near Claude reaches the railroad; the main track is affected
September 13 Initial notice: field personnel responded to assess the site; reopening time undetermined
September 13 Follow-up notice: no route around; reopening estimated for 2:00 a.m. on September 14
September 14, 3:03 a.m. Main track back in service, 63 minutes after the estimate
September 14 Closing report published, with the reopening time on the record

No detour around the closed track

The follow-up addressed whether an alternative route was available. “There is no route around,” BNSF told customers. The notice did not quantify the resulting traffic delays or identify how many trains or shipments were affected. Claude lies approximately 30 miles southeast of Amarillo on the Red River Valley Subdivision, part of BNSF’s Red River Division.

BNSF also said its Load and Ride Solutions team would contact the representatives of customers whose loaded shipments were directly involved within 24 hours of the incident.

Second derailment location added in four calendar days

The Claude initial notice followed the opening of another derailment advisory series near Mitchell, Nebraska. BNSF published the Mitchell initial report on September 10 and its closing report on September 12. The Claude initial notice followed on September 13, making it the second derailment location added to the library within four calendar days.

Earlier in 2026, the same library logged derailment advisories elsewhere on the network. These covered Danville, Kansas, and Woodward, Oklahoma, in June; Wishram, Washington, and Glenwood Springs, Colorado, in May; Des Moines, Iowa, in March; and Angora, Nebraska, and New Westminster, British Columbia, in February.

Derailment advisory series listed in BNSF’s customer-notification library from January 1 through September 14, 2026. Dates shown are the publication dates of the initial and closing reports, not outage durations. Source: BNSF Railway customer notifications.
Location First notice Closing notice
Claude, Texas September 13 September 14
Mitchell, Nebraska September 10 September 12
Danville, Kansas, and Woodward, Oklahoma June 22 June 23
Wishram, Washington May 29 May 30
Glenwood Springs, Colorado May 7 May 7
Des Moines, Iowa March 27 April 1
Angora, Nebraska February 20 February 21
New Westminster, British Columbia February 5 February 7

Six cars derail in Montana rail yard

Separately, six BNSF cars derailed inside the Shelby rail yard in Montana at approximately 6:39 a.m. on Monday, September 14. BNSF reported no injuries and no release of hazardous materials. The Toole County Sheriff’s Office said its dispatch received a report at about 7:20 a.m. and closed nearby roads while responders checked the site.

Shelby Public Schools moved students to the nearby airport for collection by their parents and cancelled classes for the day. The sheriff’s office lifted the road closures shortly before 11:30 a.m. and reported no active leaks. As of September 15, the Shelby incident did not appear in BNSF’s public customer-notification library.

What the record does not say

The documented interval between the first report and the return to service was 29 hours and 44 minutes. BNSF also said no route around the affected track was available. The notifications do not identify the cause of the derailment, describe the train or state how many cars left the rails.