Community rallies after derailment in Raymond, MN

RAYMOND, Minn. (KEYC) - Embers continue to smolder in a massive train derailment in Southwest Minnesota.

The derailment occurred around 1AM Thursday in the town of Raymond, which lies on the border of Chippewa and Kandyohi counties. Authorities say the train was carrying ethanol and corn syrup.

“I probably was woken at Yeah, not too long after one o’clock.”

Early Thursday Morning, Aaron Greydanus and the rest of the town of Raymond were suddenly awoken after a train derailed a few hundred feet from the highway.

“They evacuated us to seven miles away to Prinsburg.”

The derailment prompted a national response, as the Governor himself rushed into town to assess the situation.

“They will as quickly as possible shrink that containment zone based on the best information that’s out there and, and get you back to home and then the things that, that, that will happen afterwards, what we need to do to follow up this community is going to expend a lot of resources, um, from your fire department,” said Minnesota Governor Tim Walz.

As soon as the command set up then we we went just were feeding people.

Greydanus is the pastor at the Raymond Christian Reformed Church, where volunteers quickly turned their building into a feeding hall for first responders.

“You get emotional overseeing people just be so generous and for me, that was that was just a piece of, of this where people came and just would call what can we do? What can we donate?”said Greydanus.

A community coming together. “They want to love. They want to serve.” To make a difference in the face of tragedy.

“They serve us we want to serve them.”

Copyright 2023 KEYC. All rights reserved.