A steel storage tank full of corn syrup burst Monday causing a wall to collapse and allowing 200,000 gallons of corn sugar water to flow forcefully toward the Mississippi River, knocking railroad cars off tracks in its path.

The incident happened at the Roquette America Inc. plant and authorities are investigating.

An official with the Iowa Department of Natural Resources reportedly likened the force of the sugar water coming out of the tank to a tidal wave in explaining how it could knock over railroad cars.

Officials were working on cleaning up the spill, the corn sugar water ran into a ditch that empties into the river, but authorities don't expect any long-term damage to the river.

Keokuk-based Roquette America Inc., is an agent for Lestrem, France-based Roquette Freres, which is a significant supplier of glucose syrups. Corn syrup is a glucose syrup.

Roquette uses corn, wheat and potatoes to generate an extensive range of products for food, pharmaceutical and cosmetics, paper and corrugated board, fermentation, chemistry and industrial applications, according to a statement on the company's website.

According to the sugar industry, when corn syrup and glucose syrup are interchangeable terms. The dextrose, or sugar content in corn syrup ranges from 20 percent to 98 percent. Corn syrup is used in many "salad dressings, tomato sauces, powdered drink mixes, fruit drinks and juices, and frozen desserts like pudding and ice milk," the Sugar Association says in a statement on its website.

Dextrose is a type of sugar that affects insulin levels in the body.