A Transit Train Derailed At Penn Station For The Second Time In Two Weeks

For the second time in two weeks, a train has derailed near New York’s Penn Station. Back on March 24th, a slow-moving Amtrak Acela train derailed and sideswiped a New Jersey Transit commuter train at Penn Station, causing minor injuries. On Monday, three New Jersey Transit trains carrying 1,200 passengers derailed as the train slowly pulled into New York’s busy Penn Station. Authorities say five people were injured as train 3926 from Trenton rolled onto Track Nine during rush hour morning traffic. Reports indicate that over 600 people needed to walk across the tracks to get back up to the nearest train station platform.

FDNY Chief Roger Sakowich explained how the act of assisting the passengers out of the train, which was pulling 10 cars plus a locomotive, was tedious in nature:

“The biggest part of the issue was that the trains derailed in a way that it pinched the cars so that the doors to the cars did not align up. So we had to take people from the last four cars, which took a little bit of time, down onto the tracks,” he said.

“After we removed power to make sure the scene was safe, we walked them along the road bed back up into a car that was closed to the station and removed them that way.”

According to Reuters, passengers reported bumping and shaking before the train came to a halt. Witnesses also said they could see the broken wheel as the train rested on the tracks. Passengers posted pictures on social media of the chaotic evacuation scene that took over two hours to complete.

https://twitter.com/NJTCommuter/status/848888577777963008

https://twitter.com/weatherly/status/848889786781847555

https://twitter.com/Torresfancies/status/848901216478343168

https://twitter.com/NJTCommuter/status/848882306383310852

Authorities warned commuters to expect continued cancellations and delays due to the derailment.

(Via Reuters, CNBC & New York Daily News)