The company is working to clean up the spill that is estimated at more than 18,000 gallons of ethanol and the other cars including those that fell into the river or are on their sides.
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There was no impact to nearby waterways and no injuries were reported.
A 13-car Canadian Pacific train crashed on Sunday, resulting in one tank auto spilling Bakken crude oil near the Wisconsin town, according to the agency.
Emergency crews are racing to stop a derailed freight trains cars from leaking crude oil. Dozens of homes were evacuated, as Hazardous Materials teams were called in response to the incident. Officials said they plan to meet again at 6 p.m.to discuss progress on the cleanup and investigation and to determine whether it is safe for residents to return.
The company said that five of the tanker cars released ethanol into the river. A few 500 gallons of crude oil or less spilled, Cummings said.
Watertown Mayor John David told ABC News the derailment happened in an industrial area surrounded by residences. The tracks were located along the Mississippi River.
Federal Railroad Administration regional administrator Steven Illich said there was no reason to believe the Watertown derailment was anything but an accident. The railway says it reserved hotel rooms for the affected families.
Sarah Zarling has become a close watcher of oil trains since February, when she realized her Watertown, Wis., house was in the blast zone if a train derailed and caught fire. The agency has also ordered freight rail companies to remove faulty parts it says have been involved in multiple oil train leaks.
“It could have been a rail, it could have been a wheel”, says Tom Clauder. Five of the tanker cars of ethanol have had releases in the Mississippi River.
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State inspectors are not aware of any previous problems on the section of track where the train derailed and will be looking into every possible cause.
