Derailment halts Southland trains

A substantial derailment has halted train movements in Southland.

Two coal wagons at the rear of a long freight train came off the tracks near Clinton on Friday night.

KiwiRail spokesman Kevin Ramshaw says close to 17 kilometres of track has been damaged. He says a phone call from a member of the public alerted KiwiRail to the derailment.

Mr Ramshaw says while some freight can be moved by road, other freight will have to be held back until the line is reopened hopefully on Wednesday.

- Newstalk ZB