At least four passengers are confirmed dead and 67 others injured after a major train derailment Sunday morning in New York City.
According to officials from the New York Fire Department, the derailment took place shortly after 7 a.m. near the Spuyten Duyvil station in the Bronx, approximately 10 miles north of Grand Central Station, where seven of the train’s eight cars left the tracks as the train passed through a sharp turn.
The Metro-North train was reportedly carrying 100 to 150 passengers at the time of the accident, traveling from the city of Poughkeepsie to the Grand Central Terminal.
“The windows broke out… the gravel came flying up in our faces,” said passenger Amanda Swanson. “I really didn’t know if I would survive. The train felt like it was on its side and dragging for a long time. The whole thing felt like slow motion.”
Another surviving passenger, Dianna Jackson, added “I was lying on my back, gravel was flying everywhere. I was dragging along the ground… Maybe it was a minute, it felt like an eternity, I just wanted it to stop. I had gravel in my teeth, I was eating rocks. But I was grateful to be eating rocks because I’m still alive.”
Three of the four passengers killed in the crash were thrown from the train as cars overturned and dragged along the ground. Rescue divers were initially dispatched into the nearby Hudson River, though no other bodies were found, and all of the train’s occupants are believed to be accounted for.
Surviving passengers were rushed to several hospitals throughout the area, including St. Barnabas Hospital, where 12 were treated, including two who were injured critically. One of the passengers reportedly suffered a spinal cord injury that could result in paralysis from the neck down. 14 others were admitted to New-York Presbyterian Hospital, where at least four were also in critical condition. In total, 67 passengers were injured in the crash.
No official cause for the derailment has been declared, though speed is believed to be a primary factor, as the train’s operator told investigators that the train’s brakes failed before the crash, and several passengers reported that the train was traveling much quicker than normal. “That will be a key point of concern, whether this train was moving too quickly,” said NY’s commissioner of emergency management, Joe Bruno.
“We’ve got a lot of work to do,” added Deborah Hersman, Chairwoman of the National Transportation Safety Board, which will now conduct a large scale investigation into the crash, which could take several days or weeks.
If you or someone you know has been injured in a train accident such as this, you have legal rights. Depending on the circumstances that led to your damages, you may be entitled to compensation, which a train accident lawyer can help you recover in full.
At AA Accident Attorneys, we understand your legal rights, and will fight to get you everything that you need to get back on your feet. As with all of our clients, we will not charge you for any of our legal services until your case is won. If we are unable to collect on your case, then you will not owe us anything.
For more information about what we can do for you, or for a free consultation to discuss your legal options, call us today at 800-260-2577.
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