Raleigh, N.C. — A railroad tanker leaked an unknown quantity of ethanol Sunday afternoon on tracks at the south end of Carson Street in Raleigh, officials said.

The incident began at about 1:15 p.m. Sunday near where Sunrise Avenue and Carson Street meet. Norfolk Southern spokesman Robin Chapman said a yardmaster noticed the liquid leaking from the tanker when the train of which it was a part pulled into the company's classification yard.

The tracks are north of Capital Boulevard and south of East Whitaker Mill Road.

Hazmat crews from the Raleigh Fire Department went to the scene, and police were directing traffic in the area. Firefighters turned the incident over to railroad workers after closing a leaking valve, Division Chief James Poole said.

There were no evacuations. Chapman called the leak a "minimal" spill.

There was no word on what caused the leak or where the tank car was bound. The classification yard is an area where freight cars are sorted for assembly from incoming trains and outgoing trains are assembled.