Residents in western Minnesota town displaced by train derailment find refuge at nearby church

PRINSBURG, Minn. -- Roughly 60 residents from a western Minnesota town are receiving care at a nearby church after a train carrying ethanol and corn syrup derailed around 1 a.m. Thursday morning.

Steven Zwart, senior pastor at Unity Christian Reform Church, said he was notified of an imminent evacuation around 1:30 a.m. Originally about 150 people stayed at a school overnight, but were transferred to church later in the morning. 

Since then, about 20 to 25 volunteers have shown up at the church, Zwart said, serving breakfast and planning meals for the rest of the day.

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"Anybody that needs help, we're here today," Zwart said.

Residents of Raymond were woken up by an alert system and made their way to the school.

"When you're jarred awake in the middle of the night, you're just kind of trying to figure out what's going on," Zwart said. "A lot of people were just trying to pull the pieces together."

James Miller, who lives in the area, said in the beginning he was just trying to get his bearings, figuring out what to bring with him. Now, he said he's still tired, but "more excited that we've got this support that's come out."

"One of the beautiful things about living in a small town, in a collection of small towns, is when people hear there's a need, people step up to the plate," Zwart said.

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Zwart added that his phone has been ringing all morning from businesses and grocery stores in the community reaching out to offer help.

"I like to say that we're known for that," Miller said. "That makes you feel really good - really the reason why we live in small communities like this."

BNSF Railway officials said at a press conference that residents would be able to return home at 11 a.m. Officials said there is no risk of toxic exposure, and lifted the evacuation order around noon. 

   Raymond evacuation order lifted by WCCO - CBS Minnesota on Scribd
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