Crews soak up oil along tracks in SE Minn.

Crews have placed oil-absorbing booms and about 100 sandbags along a section of railroad track near Winona where a train spilled oil last month.

The Canadian Pacific Railway train dribbled about 12,000 gallons of crude oil along 70 miles of track between Red Wing and Winona on Feb. 3.

Canadian Pacific spokesman Ed Greenberg said the cleanup site is near Weaver Bottoms, which is part of the federal Upper Mississippi Fish and Wildlife Refuge.

"As a result, we have placed absorbent booms on both sides of the tracks in that area to continue to contain the product to railway property. Also, our experts have applied microbes, to assist in the degradation of the product, as well as sandbags have also been placed in the same location," Greenberg said.

Warmer temperatures have allowed crews to see more of the oil. Greenberg said there's no trace of oil in nearby waterways but state and federal officials continue to monitor the area.

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