Tons of molasses erupt from rail car

CANNON FALLS, Minn. – A railroad tank car carrying 31,000 gallons f molasses under pressure ruptured and spewed the sticky, gummy cargo for hundreds of feet. There was no fire. There were no injuries. The accident occurred about 7 a.m. within the city at a tin shed owned by the Cannon Valley Railroad. The cause of the eruption was not immediately clear, said Fire Chief Mike Althoff. A plume from the pressurized molassses spewed 400 feet into the air, some coming down in a syrupy mist 1-1/2 miles west on U.S. Highway 52. The accident was at the end of a rail spur a block from the Cannon River at 1022 North Fifth Street.

Sticky mess. The tank car was on tracks half inside a railroad shed. Other tankers were coupled on the same spur. Image: Cannon Falls police

Molasses

Molasses, sometimes called blackstrap, is a byproduct of sugar production. It is a thick, dark, sticky syrup used for sweetening and flavoring foods. It’s normally inert, but as any cook knows it can erupt n flame if overheated in a frying pan. As an industrial product, molasses used for animal feed and as a binding agent for industrial products. Its myriad used include road de-icing, ethanol production and pharmaceuticals

Familiar? How most of us know molasses.

Cannon Valley Rail profile

Cannon Valley Rail is part of Progressive Rail, which operates numerous short lines that connect industrial plants with major railroads. It is based in the south Minneapolis suburb of Lakeville. The Cannon Valley subsidiary connects Cannon Falls with a Union Pacific interchange 15 miles away at Northfield. There is a second spur into food processing mill at The  Great Western Industrial Park near Randolph.