Pueblo driver recalls the immediate aftermath of the deadly I-25 train derailment

PUEBLO COUNTY, Colo. (KRDO) - KRDO13 spoke with one driver who recalled the moments after a freight train derailed and a railroad bridge collapsed over I-25, just north of Pueblo.

Pueblo resident Justin Fox said he was driving back from church in Colorado Springs Sunday when he saw the aftermath of the accident. Fox said around 3:30 p.m., he and his girlfriend were driving southbound when a plume of coal dust appeared in the air in front of them.

"When we got a little bit further up the interstate, we could see from where the traffic stopped, the derailment on the bridge in front of us," said Fox.

Fox and other drivers were stuck on the interstate for hours. I-25 has since been closed in both directions with no estimation on when it'll reopen.

"There was coal all over the highway," said Fox. "The train cars were twisted all the way down to the locomotives on the south side of the interstate."

Fox told KRDO13 he's thankful he hadn't been in the area just a few minutes earlier.

"We might have been right in the middle of it had we been five minutes sooner. We feel blessed that we weren't involved in it," said Fox.

Unfortunately, Colorado State Patrol did confirm one person, a semi-truck driver from California named Lafollette Henderson, died in the accident.

Fox said his thoughts are with Henderson and his family.

"[My] prayers go out to the family and I hope they get to the bottom of the investigation and make sure it doesn't happen again," said Fox.

Officials have yet to say who was responsible for maintaining the tracks or the bridge. Investigators with the National Transportation Safety Board have arrived and are in the process of conducting an investigation.