Train derails Monday in downtown Macon, no injuries reported

A train derailed in downtown Macon Monday, according to Georgia Central Railway.

Multiple railcars were seen toppled over in a wooded area around 6:30 p.m. near Lower Poplar Road, a short street surrounded by industrial warehouses past Luther Williams Baseball Field and behind Carolyn Crayton Park.

Nobody was injured and there were no people on the cars that tumbled off the tracks, according to Joe Underwood, general manager for Georgia Central Railway, which owns the train.

The crash reportedly happened shortly after 11 a.m., according to 13WMAZ.

Underwood was unsure of what was inside, but he confirmed there were no hazardous materials.

“We’ve gotten this far without anybody getting hurt out here,” he said.

But he was worried about what caused the crash.

“The wheels are designed to stay on top, and there’s different things that can happen that’ll cause them to come off the rail,” Underwood said. “We’re still ruling out all the possibilities to figure out exactly what it was that caused it.”

He monitored the scene from about 500 feet away, at Lower Poplar Street and Willie Smokie Glover Drive, which was temporarily blocked to prevent cars from driving over the tracks.

“We’re going to have carts rolling back and forth,” Underwood said. “We’re not wanting any of the public to be near where something might happen if the carts starts rolling.”

Underwood said “a handful” of railcars fell off the tracks, but he did not specify how many.

Emergency response crews with Utilco Railroad Services were at the scene and used cranes to remove the railcars Monday evening.

“These companies... don’t take that much time, but with this situation where they’re at, it’s a little more difficult,” Underwood said.

The railway companies were still investigating the incident, and Underwood expected the area to be cleared and functioning normally by around 11 p.m.

This story was originally published May 19, 2025 at 8:00 PM.