WHITE COUNTY, ARKANSAS, Ark. — Update: As of 3:08 p.m., Highway 367 from McRae to Beebe is open once again and traffic is flowing as usual.
According to the White County Sheriff's Office, a hazmat incident involving the Union Pacific Railroad happened on Monday.
The incident occurred near Highway 367, with authorities asking the public to avoid the area from McRae down to the Bowman Road and Highway 367 intersection.
Authorities have said that the train was traveling through town and was "spewing a toxic gas," that they later identified as nitric acid. They shared that this led to evacuations of those who were within one mile of the train which was stopped near McRae.
"You don't see this type of thing every day. Being in this line of work, it's always different, and we're always ready to respond for something when something does happen like this," said Chief Dakota Burks with the McRae Police Department.
Chief Burks said the incident happened outside of city limits but the train was making its way to McRae.
"I was notified by White County dispatch that a train would possibly be coming through Beebe and was leaking some kind of fluid, and at that time, I noticed the train was coming into McRae, so I tried to get it stopped as soon as possible," Chief Burks said.
At first, reports from the Arkansas Department of Transportation believed that the "toxic gas" was initially nitrogen oxide but in the time since we've learned that the substance of concern was nitric acid.
The sheriff's office said that several groups were on the scene assisting with the incident, including Union Pacific, Beebe Fire, and the White County Sheriff's Office.
McRae resident, Laura Harrison, said she believes this incident was taken care of so well because of the quick response of first responders.
"I must say that quick action really helped a lot, you know, but unfortunately for me, I wasn't hearing it because I was trying to get ready, and so when I went that way, I knew something was going on," Harrison said.
According to authorities, there were no injuries or casualties as a result of the incident. They confirmed that the train never derailed and that it was strictly leaking a hazardous gas.
We reached out to Union Pacific for more information about the incident and they provided us with the following statement:
"Around 10 a.m., a passerby spotted a rail car on fire in the area of Highway 367 S and Rip Kirk Road. The train was stopped and first responders are on scene. As a precaution, homes and businesses within about a half-mile have been evacuated. Hazmat teams are at the scene and air monitoring will soon begin. The cause is under investigation."
Officials explained that air monitoring near the site shows normal air conditions. The train has now been moved but the cause of the incident remains under investigation.
There's no further information on the incident, but we will update this article as more information becomes available.