Lafayette, LA, train wreck...

You may have seen photos of the train wreck in Lafayette, LA, which spilled some nasty chemicals and caused a large evacuation.

If you've seen the photos, you may have noticed some cars lying on their side, leaking, under an overpass.

I've mentioned I drive a truck for Toys R Us. One of my regular stores to deliver to is the Lafayette store, and I have to go over that very overpass to get to it.

Fortunately, I went to Jackson, MS, on my last run and wasn't anywhere near when this train wreck happened.

Yikes! Glad you could avoid it!!

That's basically home for me. I work in Lafayette and I own a house there which I will move into one day. The evacuation was not that large. It was a mandatory evacuation for those within a 1 mile radius of the derailment. It may have seemed a little on the larger size because of the apartment complex and the nursing home in the vicinity which had to be evacuated.

Here's more on the story......

http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,356496,00.html

I'm glad you weren't near there. I do know someone who lives near there and I have another friend who's also from nearby, but she's in NC now so I know she was safe.

Sort of an adjunct to this message:

One real problem in an emergency evacuation is your pets. How many of us have a "crash pack" ready to go out the door, with food, water, any necessary medications, etc? Don't say it can't happen. If you live within a mile of a train track or a road that trucks can use, it CAN happen. I used to carry hazardous materials, including explosives, all the time. I was always amazed at how close to houses, schools, churches, all that we were allowed, even required to go.

By the way, that Lafayette location is mostly an industrial area.