KINGSTON, N.Y. (AP) — State transportation officials say they warned the operators of a Catskills tourist train about a rail safety issue months before a derailment left 25 stranded last month.

The Daily Freeman of Kingston reports (http://bit.ly/2h1JMVn ) the Department of Transportation said in a Nov. 10 letter to Catskill Mountain Railroad that DOT inspectors had found track deficiencies along a stretch of track in May.

The letter said the Oct. 28 derailment of a locomotive and a flatbed passenger car occurred in "the precise location" the inspectors had notified the company about following the inspection.

DOT officials blamed the derailment on the "wide gauge" between rail lines.

No one was injured, but 25 passengers had to be bused back to a train station and scenic tours were cancelled.

The company's president says he isn't commenting on the state's letter yet.

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Information from: Daily Freeman, http://www.dailyfreeman.com/

[STORY BY: THE ASSOCIATED PRESS]

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