The Latest: Train derailment prompts evacuation in Tennessee


              Emergency personnel stand by as evacuees gather at the Foothills Mall early Thursday, July 2, 2015, in Maryville, Tenn.,  after they were forced to leave their homes when rail car carrying a flammable and toxic gas has derailed and caught fire. (Brittany Bade/WBIR.com via AP)
Emergency personnel stand by as evacuees gather at the Foothills Mall early Thursday, July 2, 2015, in Maryville, Tenn., after they were forced to leave their homes when rail car carrying a flammable and toxic gas has derailed and caught fire. (Brittany Bade/WBIR.com via AP)

MARYVILLE, Tenn. (AP) - 6:25 a.m.

An area high school has been set up as a shelter for residents who've had to evacuate after a train carrying a flammable gas derailed and caught fire in eastern Tennessee.

Authorities say the Red Cross is using Heritage High School in Maryville as a shelter for residents who have no other place to go.

Residents within a 1-mile radius of the train derailment have been told to evacuate.

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6 a.m.

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.

WATE-TV reports the CSX train derailed in Blount County, 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.

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