Train derailment, fire prompts evacuation in Tennessee

WATCH: A derailed freight train carrying a poisonous chemical caught fire in east Tennessee. It forced widespread evacuations in the town of Maryville, just outside Knoxville.

MARYVILLE, Tenn. — Authorities say at least one train car carrying a flammable and toxic gas has derailed and caught fire in eastern Tennessee, prompting an evacuation within a 1-mile radius.

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WATE-TV reports the CSX train derailed in Blount County in the Maryville area, south of Knoxville.

On its Facebook page, the Blount County Sheriff’s Office said early Thursday that the evacuations could last from 24 to 48 hours.

A shelter for residents has been set up at a high school.

Tennessee Emergency Management Agency spokesman Dean Flener says there have been no reports of fatalities.