Workers used specialized equipment to pull a derailed rail car back onto the CSX rail tracks just south of downtown Youngstown. The Madison Avenue Expressway runs above the area where they were working about 10:30 a.m. Tuesday. ...Staff photo by Ed Runyan

YOUNGSTOWN — A large crew of workers — and large equipment — on Tuesday filled an industrial area off Poland Avenue southeast of downtown to straighten and pull away rail cars that derailed at about 8:40 p.m. Monday.

The rail line where the derailment took place is owned by CSX, which said Tuesday the derailment did not cause any injuries, leaks or spills of freight. It did not say how many rail cars derailed, only “multiple.” It said in a statement that all of the cars that derailed remained “upright and in line.”

At about 10:30 a.m., dozens of workers in yellow vests were working under the Madison Avenue Expressway with a large piece of equipment to reposition a rail car.

At the same time, a worker used a bulldozer to pull five rail cars south on the rail line away from the car being repositioned on the track.

They appeared to be fully loaded with coke, which is used in the steel industry.

Many big trucks attached to heavy equipment trailers were parked along Poland Avenue, apparently waiting to haul away the heavy equipment brought to the site.

Many of the trucks were owned by Hulder Services, which provides services to the railroad industry. Among the services is removing damaged rail cars and collecting spilled cargo, according to the Hulder web site.

Dump trucks also were moving in and out of the site. The rail line where the derailment took place runs just south of the Mahoning River near Vallourec Star on the North Side through downtown across from the Covelli Centre and along Poland Avenue.

Workers were accessing the rail line on Cedar Street under the Madison Avenue Expressway. The unknown number of rail cars that derailed appeared to be closest to two buildings along Performance Place, a street in an industrial park off Poland Avenue. One of the companies in the park is Trivium Aluminum Packaging.

The cause of the derailment is under investigation, according to CSX.

Youngstown Fire Department Battalion Chief John Lightly said the captain whose crew responded to the scene said a “couple” of the train car wheels “slid off of the rail, but the car itself did not go over. No hazardous materials or spills, anything like that.”

He said it’s not clear whether the derailment happened because of weather or a mechanical issue. “We only ended up sending one company, so it wasn’t anything major for us,” Lightly said. He said he does not know what direction the train was headed.

Lightly said people may not realize it, but a lot of trains come through Youngstown on that rail line every day.

erunyan@vindy.com