About two dozen rail cars washed onto the New Jersey Turnpike as a result of the powerful storm surge from Sandy, authorities say.
The highway was closed Monday Carteret and Newark in anticipation of flooding and remains closed Tuesday.
New Jersey Department of Transportation spokesman Joe Dee told NBC 4 New York Sandy's force pushed several tanker cars onto one of the busiest roadways in America. The wheel sets to the cars stayed on the tracks, which run parallel to the turnpike.
While many different chemicals are shipped on those tracks, one of the biggest commodities is ethanol used to mix with gasoline. It was not clear what, if anything, was in those tanks.
Dee said workers are trying to remove the tanks.
The turnpike and the rail tracks abut a marsh area connected to New York harbor, which experienced historic storm surges and a record-setting 32.5-foot wave during Sandy.
