No Cause Found for Freight Derailment

State investigators said Thursday they have been unable to determine why a freight train derailed last Oct. 8, sending a flatbed car crashing into a Mt. Washington apartment building. One resident was injured and two railroad workers were hurt during the cleanup.

At a Highland Park hearing called by City Councilman Richard Alatorre, California Public Utilities Commission officials said eight cars left the track after a rail rolled outward, but said they do not know what caused the rail to move. They said the Santa Fe Railway train was not traveling at excessive speed, and they found no equipment defects.

Santa Fe spokesman Michael A. Martin said information on the derailment is being used in a study by the Assn. of American Railroads to determine whether freight cars with double-stacked containers, such as the ones involved in the Mt. Washington crash, are the culprits in a nationwide string of accidents.