METRA Derailment in Chicago

[Free4Life11]

How sad! I used to ride the Rock Island train to visit a friend of mine.

1 dead in Metra train derailment

One person was confirmed dead after a Metra train derailed at an elevated track near 47th and Wentworth on the South Side.

Rock Island District train No. 504 from Joliet was carrying about 100 people, said Tom Miller, a Metra spokesman.

The Cook County Coroner's office confirmed there was one dead, but had no further details. There were an undetermined number of injuries, Miller said.

At least 10 people were seen strapped to backboards for transportation to area hospitals.

About 15 ambulances and a Chicago Fire Department LifeFlight helicopter were at the scene, as well as personnel from Metra, the Illinois Department of Transportation, Chicago Police and Chicago Office of Emergency Management and Communications.

Stephanie Smith, a master's student at DePaul University, said she heard brakes screeching, then the train came to a halt. People in the car were trying to help each other, she said.

"I just went flying into the safety seat bar and fell to the ground," said Smith, who was sitting in the second car in the upper tier. "We were skidding out of control. weaving back and forth. People were weeping and screaming." she said.

Firefighters were raising a fire-truck ladder and a large metal stepladder to the elevated track. There is a 30-foot gap between two rail cars, and several broken windows.

Dozens of passengers were milling about the scene, some weeping, consoling each other or talking to family members on cell phones. Several dozen commuters were sent on three CTA buses to U.S. Cellular Field to await travel connections or address minor injuries.

The derailed train was scheduled to arrive at Chicago's LaSalle Street Station at 8:45 a.m. It derailed at about 8:20 a.m., Miller said.

All Metra Rock Island service was disrupted, according to the Metra Web site. The commuter rail agency advised commuters on the line to find other routes.

Passengers from train 504 were to be transfered to buses at 47th Street to continue travel to LaSalle Station. Train 505 returned to LaSalle Station at 10 a.m., and train 506 was at the Blue Island station awaiting Metra Electric trains into Chicago. The next scheduled train was to arrive at 11:18 a.m.

 

[Ava83]

I heard this also, it sounds horrible. I guess it was almost in that same place last year with the switch that did not switch..and when you take it at 60 mph.