{O/C} Some sad news coming from the U.S. West.
An Amtrak train bound for Seattle and Portland in western U.S. derailed in Montana.
While local authorities are looking into the mishap, among the some 100 passengers on board, at least 3 of them are confirmed to have met their demise.
{SOT}
It was at 3 p.m. on Saturday local time when eight of the ten cars carrying some 140 passengers and 16 crew members on board derailed.
The Empire Builder train was en route from Chicago to Seattle when it derailed near Joplin, west of Havre, Montana.
Part of the train was slated to arrive in Portland at 10:10 Sunday morning, while another section of the train was scheduled to arrive in Seattle at 10:25 Sunday morning.
Needless to say, it was a horrific moment for passengers, who were stunned by what had become of the train.
According to passengers, something that shouldn't have been on the track was there, begetting this mishap.
This video purports to show that one car was completely off the track, and residents of communities close by quickly mobilising to help the trapped passengers.
Passenger Jacob Cordeiro posted photos via Twitter showing passengers staying in a staging area for the wounded in a high school in Chester, Montana, a contiguous city.
Thus far, it is unclear how many people are injured. But the number of deaths now stands at 3.
Investigators are now scrutinising the crash scene with a fine-tooth comb.
The National Transportation Safety Board will deploy a 14-member team, comprised of investigators and specialists in railroad signals and other disciplines, to begin a full investigation into the crash.
As a result of the derailment, other westbound and southbound Amtrak trains on Sunday will terminate in and originate from Minneapolis instead.
There was no Amtrak train accident whatsoever in the past two years.
Train accidents happen from time to time in the U.S. Last year, around 760 people were killed in train accidents in that country.
Comments