'Mass casualty' incident after cars, train collide in N.Y.
Source: USA TODAY
VALHALLA, N.Y. — At least 12 people were injured Tuesday after a Metro-North commuter train struck two cars just north of the train station.
The crash, which occurred about 6:30 p.m. ET near the Commerce Street crossing, caused an explosion that ignited both the cars and the train.
Numerous police and fire departments are responding for a "mass-casualty" incident. Authorities could not yet say how serious the injuries are or if anyone is believed to have been killed.
A spokesman for the MTA said the train was heading northbound and had left Grand Central Terminal at 5:45 p.m. and was headed northbound to make its first stop at Chappaqua.
Read more: http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation/2015/02/03/mass-casualty-incident-after-car-train-collide-in-ny/22823329/
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Newsjock
(11,733 posts)Six people were killed when a Metro-North train packed with commuters hit a car on the railroad tracks near Valhalla at the height of evening rush hour, sparking a fiery crash that's injured at least 12 people, officials say.
Gidney N Cloyd
(19,847 posts)(The article says the driver and 5 train passengers died)
I was once on a commuter train when a car somehow broad-sided us. No one on our car even noticed.
brooklynite
(96,882 posts)...the engineer runs the train from the front passenger car. There's no separate engine in front.
Renew Deal
(85,148 posts)In this case the car exploded. I can't imagine what the scene was like on that train, but I can't believe people died in this manner on a Metro North train. Either the train was packed and people couldn't escape or the fire got into the car very fast (through the windows?). It's a shock.
rebecca_herman
(617 posts)I think it exploded instantly people probably died from initial explosion.
Apparently driver of car stopped when the bar came down on her hood, got out, looked around, then decided to drive forward and try and beat the train rather than back up.
awful if it's true.
leftynyc
(26,060 posts)that somehow the electrified third rail came through the train car - that's what killed the train passengers.
Yo_Mama
(8,303 posts)leftynyc
(26,060 posts)“This is a truly ugly and brutal sight,” he said. Mr. Cuomo said the car was stopped on the tracks and the crossing gates were down when it was hit by the train, resulting in a fire that consumed the vehicle and the first car of the train. The train pushed the S.U.V. about 400 feet, and the explosion caused the third rail of the track to go through the front train car, Mr. Cuomo said.
It was the third rail coming through the train car that killed the people.
brooklynite
(96,882 posts)leftynyc
(26,060 posts)This is the local, local, local newspaper:
http://www.lohud.com/story/news/local/westchester/2015/02/03/train-car-collide-valhalla-mass-casualties/22822737/
The Metropolitan Transportation Authority said the driver of the car - a woman who was possibly outside of her vehicle when the crash occurred - and five people on board the train were among those killed. Officials later said that seven lives had been lost in total but revised that Wednesday morning.
mahatmakanejeeves
(69,848 posts)
appalachiablue
(44,022 posts)WV. Passengers couldn't open the windows to get out, due to the kind of train windows. Some of the passengers were students returning from time as community volunteers. Sad incident.
mahatmakanejeeves
(69,848 posts)Last edited Wed Feb 4, 2015, 02:50 PM - Edit history (1)
The eastbound train was a set of Budd cars coming from Brunswick, Maryland. The westbound train was the Capitol Limited. The story involves technical details. In a nutshell, the eastbound train crew forgot the signal indication they had before they made a station stop at Kensington. When they left the station, they accelerated to maximum authorized speed. The indication of the previous signal, though, was such that they should not have been moving at maximum authorized speed.
I'm going to lunch now. Before I go, here's the story at Wikipedia. I'll link to the NTSB report when I get back.
1996 Maryland train collision
ETA: the article has lots of links. Go to the ones that lead to articles by Don Phillips in the Washington Post.
ETA, part 2. They should NOT have been moving at maximum authorized speed. Big difference.
ETA, part 3: Here's the NTSB report, as promised. The link at Wikipedia is bad.
Collision and Derailment of Maryland Rail Commuter MARC Train 286 and National Railroad Passenger Corporation AMTRAK Train 29
appalachiablue
(44,022 posts)to open doors & emergency windows b/c of old design, & the lack of adequate train lighting at night 5:30 pm were factors & design flaws cited for correction after the investigation. I knew it was students working in WV, recall Harper's Ferry. Reminder of another transportation tragedy during winter & with snow, the terrible Air Florida plane crash on Memorial Bridge after takeoff from DC National Airport, Jan. 13, 1982.
mahatmakanejeeves
(69,848 posts)appalachiablue
(44,022 posts)related to the collision, yet little to nothing of the human tragedy--the student passengers' panic & brave efforts to search for exits & to open windows in the dark, & also the plight of crew members. Appreciate all the links, I may look at WaPo coverage & ask a relative who worked for CSX.
mahatmakanejeeves
(69,848 posts)How many feet did they travel from the time the brakes were applied? What was their velocity? Were they on straight track or a curve? What was the degree of curvature? What was the pressure in the brake line?
The people writing them are affected, but the point is to come to some understanding of the event that will let us prevent a recurrence.
Don Phillips covered transportation issues for the Post until he was bought out a few years back. He is also a railroad enthusiast. As a result, his articles about anything involving railroads were technically accurate and went into unusual detail. Every word was just right.