When we went outside it was after 6:30am and the sky was lit up red to the southwest towards Clifford like a new sunset but in the morning. We could hear stuff blowing up and the sky would flash.
We couldnt get near anything for 3 days. When we finally were able to travel south on Jefferson road from Marlette road and came to the crossing before Clifford road there were open side rail cars with what used to be cars on both upper and lower decks. No glass no bumpers and no tires. The fire burned so hot it melted everything off those cars. Further down tankers on there sides that they let burn out and had pushed burms of earth around them with dozers. They looked like burned out pop cans. Box cars were pulled to the west with paint burned off them. Apparently they brought in engines from the west from maybe Saginaw to begin pulling the train apart.
Clifford was closed off and nobody could get near the crossing in town east of the wreck. Never saw the burned engines or cars behind them. They indeed hit cars on the siding. Somebody had thrown the switch in the night. The siding was like a passing track with a switch at both ends of the second track that began just west of the GTW diamond. I will never forget that sight.
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