Train cars containing liquid propane derail in Helena

Four rail cars -- two containing liquid propane -- have derailed by the Montana Rail Link Trainmaster and North Roberts Street train crossing. Montana Rail Link (MRL) reports that there is no threat to the public at this time. The four cars were derailed at approximately 4:25 a.m. on Wednesday by a MRL crew switching cars in the Helena yard. “The incident is still under investigation,” said MRL Chief Communications Officer Ross Lane. “There were no injuries as a result of the derailment.” The propane tanks are fully intact with none of the material was released from the rail cars. There are MRL hazardous material responders on scene currently monitoring the situation and working closely with Helena police and fire departments.
KPAX-TV CBS/CW+ 8 Missoula

History talk focuses on Libby firefighters

The Libby Pioneer Society will host a presentation on the history of the Libby Volunteer Fire Department on Oct. 20. Retired firefighter Bob Pival will serve as the guest speaker, using digitalized photographs to showcase the department’s storied history. Bob Stickney, president of the pioneer society and a former firefighter, said he is excited for the blast from the past. “It’s very interesting to me to see what they did back then,” he said. The department got its start in 1911 during the lumber boom. Volunteer firefighters at the time trained to form bucket brigades to extinguish blazes. Stickney is particularly interested in the development of the city’s early fire hydrant system, which he described as ahead of its time. “I think the city, when they built all this stuff, they knew they were going to have fire protection,” he said. “It was pretty unique for a little town to have a hydrant system.”
Western News - Metered Site

Bomb scare at Helena school turns out to be false alarm

Authorities evacuated an elementary school in Montana's capital city on Tuesday after officials found what they thought was the remnants of a homemade bomb, but it turned out to be a plastic bottle filled with nuts and bolts left in the schoolyard. School officials made the discovery shortly before classes began at Rossiter Elementary School. They blocked off the area and called police at about 8:20 a.m., said Lewis and Clark County Sheriff Leo Dutton. An investigation found the plastic bottle wrapped in black electrical tape was full of washers, nuts and bolts, along with a non-flammable unidentified liquid, Dutton said. There was no detonator attached to the bottle. A homeless person found the bottle near a construction site and left it in the playground, he said. No threat had been made against the school, and there were no injuries or property damage.
KREM-TV CBS 2

Demolition uncovers asbestos at future Bozeman Public Safety Center site

Demolition has started on the future site of the Bozeman Public Safety Center but one factor did not go exactly as expected. Although they say they expected it, Bozeman city officials say three out of 11 buildings on the future site of the Bozeman Public Safety Center on Rouse St. were found to have asbestos. That was more than they expected. “We knew that we had some cleanup," says Chuck Winn, Bozeman assistant city manager. "We knew we had some demolition. We planned for that.” Assistant city manager Chuck Winn says turning this former MDT maintenance facility into the future Bozeman Public Safety Center was always set to hit an issue or two. But three? “The amount of asbestos we found was surprising," Winn says. "We didn’t anticipate finding that much.”
KBZK-TV CBS 7

Fire crews respond to large fire late Monday night in Helena

The Helena Fire Department responded to a large fire just past 10:30 p.m. on Monday night east of Interstate 15. According to Assistant Fire Chief Mike Chambers, the call initially came in as a wildfire on the hillside south of SK Loop. "The fire is under investigation at this point,” says Chambers. “There were no individuals around it. It was an abandoned area in an open field. It was approximately a 1,000-foot storage structure.” Firefighters were out fighting the blaze until 12:30 a.m. Tuesday morning. The fire was on private property so fire crews had to cut a gate to get to it. East Valley Fire Department was also paged out with a tender and an engine to help suppress the fire. Chamber says when it was going you could see it from different parts of the valley. There were no injuries and the structure is a total loss.
KTMF-TV ABC Montana

Man found in Yellowstone River dies

A man found Sunday in the Yellowstone River by rescue crews was pronounced dead at a Billings hospital that day, according to Yellowstone County Coroner Cliff Mahoney. The Billings Fire Department and Yellowstone County Sheriff's Office had worked together to get the man out of the water where he was found unconscious sometime after they were called for a rescue at about 8:13 a.m. The rescue took place along an area of the river about a mile down Old Blue Creek Road. Officials were still gathering information Sunday after the rescue. It appeared that prior to the rescue the man and a child were fishing in a boat when a medical emergency occurred, Cpl. Adam Lauwers of the sheriff's office said Sunday. When responders arrived the juvenile was in a passerby's car, Battalion Chief Kevin Johnson said Sunday. Johnson said that CPR was performed on the man found in the water and that he was given to American Medical Response. He was taken by ambulance to an area hospital.
KPVI-TV NBC 6