Fact Check: NO Proof That BLM Protesters -- Or Anyone -- Put Propane Tanks On Bridge Before Train Crash In Tempe, Arizona

No Sabotage

Did Black Lives Matters protesters -- or anyone, for that matter -- put propane tanks on a bridge before a fiery train crash in Tempe, Arizona? No, that's not true. A train wreck on the Tempe Town Lake bridge was not the work of the "terrorist" group BLM as a viral claim has asserted. Tempe Police Chief Sylvia Moir said there was "no criminal element" at the accident that was a "structural derailment." The train was carrying multiple cars with "hazardous material" when it crashed, causing the fire, the fire chief said.

The claim appeared as a post (archived here) where it was published on Facebook on August 2, 2020. It opened:

Regarding the Tempe Bridge derailment recently. Wondered why there was so much fire??
Here's an account from one of the people who are on the clean up crew;

This is what the post looked like on Facebook at the time of writing:

(Source: Facebook screenshot taken on Mon Aug 3 16:50:18 2020 UTC)

Here is the full text from the post:

Regarding the Tempe Bridge derailment recently. Wondered why there was so much fire??
Here's an account from one of the people who are on the clean up crew;

"For those that think BLM is a peaceful movement....it's not, it's a terrorist group. I've been involved in the derailment clean up and the place has been crawling with federal agents. Someone laid propane tanks on the rail tracks on the Tempe bridge the night of the BLM protest. This caused them to explode when the train hit them and dragging them on fire igniting the rail road ties. Bet you won't hear this from the media."

Although the post says "someone laid propane tanks on the rail tracks," the implication is that BLM protesters were involved.

The train accident and partial bridge collapse over Tempe Town Lake occurred on Wednesday, July 29, 2020 at approximately 6:15 am local time in Tempe, Arizona. Three tank cars of the 102 cars fell as the south side of the bridge collapsed. The cause of the derailment is still under investigation but there is currently no evidence that the accident was caused by BLM protesters or anyone else leaving propane tanks on the bridge before the accident.

Tempe Police Chief Sylvia Moir explained that her agency was involved in the investigation from the beginning. She spoke during a press conference on Friday, July 31, 2020:

If anything gave rise to suggest that there was a criminal nature to this derailment our folks would be ready to conduct a criminal investigation.

"At this time, there is nothing to suggest that this is anything other than a structural derailment, there's nothing to suggest that there is a criminal element.

"We take very seriously our responsibility to ensure that our investigators are on ground preserving and collecting anything that would be of use if this rose to a criminal investigation."

Here is the video from the press conference:

Tempe Fire Rescue Chief Greg Ruiz described one car leaking the hazardous material cyclohexane, a highly flammable chemical that can be used to make nylon or used as a paint thinner.

One of the tank cars involved in the derailment of the collapse did have a leak. It did take us some time to not only control that leak but we have worked on containment. The tank car carrying the hazardous material was uprighted."

Ruiz said that 500 gallons leaked from the tank car but described that as a low amount considering the tank carries between 25,000-30,000 gallons.

He also said two other cars that were on the bridge had hazardous materials but they were on the bridge and were removed.

The claim says "the place has been crawling with federal agents," which is standard procedure at any accident involving the railroad. During the press conference it was announced the Federal Bureau of Investigation, National Transportation Safety Board and the Federal Railway Administration, which is part of the United States Department of Transportation, all had personnel on site and were all part of the investigation, which is standard procedure for a train derailment.

Lead Stories confirmed five Federal Railway Administration inspectors were on the scene after the accident.

They worked to determine the cause of the accident by examining infrastructure, equipment and interviewing affected railroad personnel, among other things. Their investigation has concluded but the findings are still pending.

Lead Stories reached out to the Tempe police chief, the National Transportation Safety Board and the FBI regarding this story will be updated with any response.

There was a protest that turned violent in Tempe on July 27, two days before the train accident. Protesters were demanding justice for the shooting death of Dion Johnson, a Black man who was shot and killed by an Arizona Department of Public Safety tooper on May 25 during an arrest.

According to local FOX 10 Phoenix news, there were clashes between the police and protesters that night. The police said seven people were arrested and claimed an officer was injured after an object was thrown in their face. Video from the scene shows police officers spraying protesters and getting into a physical altercation with a person on the street.

Here is video from CBS 5 of the police clashing with protesters:

Demonstrators clash with police during protests in Tempehttps://t.co/alA2Lyq5BK pic.twitter.com/231fibRFIs

-- azfamily 3TV CBS 5 (@azfamily) July 28, 2020

The claim says: "Someone laid propane tanks on the rail tracks on the Tempe bridge the night of the BLM protest. This caused them to explode when the train hit them and dragging them on fire igniting the rail road ties."

There were smaller protests on July 28 in Phoenix at the City Hall, the day after the larger protest that turned violent.

Tim McMahan with Union Pacific Corporate Relations confirmed to Lead Stories that "trains did travel over the trackage" after the July 27 protest and before the accident on July 29. They declined to state how many. There were no other accidents in that time frame.