Crews working to clear train derailment site in Aurora

Tracks at the site of a freight train derailment in Aurora are expected to be cleared by the end of the weekend, a spokesman for the BNSF Railway said Friday.

More than a half-dozen cars of an eastbound freight train derailed around 2:30 p.m. Thursday near River and Third streets. No injuries were reported.

BNSF took command of the scene about an hour after the derailment, authorities said.

Spokesman Andy Williams said crews have been working around the clock to remove the derailed cars.

"We are running trains intermittently through the area," Williams said, "and we'll do so through the weekend as we remove the cars and make track repairs."

The derailment caused several train rails to buckle.

Because some of the cars were damaged, crews won't be able to put them back on the tracks and roll them out.

"They've had to bring in heavy equipment to get them out," Williams said.

In the case of two box cars that are on their sides, the plan is to use heavy equipment to move them to a spot away from the tracks where they will be placed on trucks or disassembled and moved in pieces.

None of the cars were carrying hazardous materials, officials said.