Passengers dead and injured in New Jersey rush hour train crash
Crowded commuter service runs straight through the buffers at station serving New York
ONE person was killed and at least 180 injured when a train smashed into Hoboken Station in New Jersey yesterday during morning rush hour.
Commuters on the platform watched in horror as the train slammed into concrete blocks and became airborne – striking the ceiling of the station and sending debris flying and leaving electrical wires dangling dangerously overhead.
One person on the platform was killed and passengers on the train were thrown through the air.
Rescue workers arrived within minutes to evacuate people trapped on the train, and sirens rang out continually as dozens of ambulances and police vehicles sped to the scene. Scores of those with less serious injuries were transported by bus to two local hospitals.
Hoboken, a transport hub just across the Hudson River from New York City, was to be the last stop for the New Jersey Transit commuter train.
About 15,000 people board trains at Hoboken each morning during the week.
William Blaine, an engineer who has driven trains similar to the one that crashed, was in the station when he heard what sounded like an explosion and ran toward the scene.
“I looked to the right and I just saw people laying down, I saw debris flying and then I saw the train,” he said. “What bothered me was I ended up stepping over a dead woman’s body.”
Mr Blaine walked to the front of the train, where he saw the driver who appeared to be slumped over in his seat.
The driver survived the crash and was undergoing treatment last night at a local hospital. Mr Blaine estimated that the train would have to be travelling at about 30mph to cause such extensive damage.
Bhagyesh Shah was standing between the first and second carriages when he was suddenly thrown in the air.
“I was lying on the floor. I was hoping the train would stop now but it didn’t stop, it just kept going. It may have only been three, four, five seconds, I don’t know,’ he said.
Mr Shah said the train was always crowded during the morning commute, but was even more so yesterday and that many people were standing at the time of the crash.
Mike Larson, an employee of New Jersey Transit who witnessed the crash, said he heard a “bomb-like explosion” and looked up as the train ploughed through the station. He said it was unclear why the engineer did not stop the train.
“I really don’t know why he came in so quickly. I can only speculate that it was a medical condition, a heart attack,” he said.
“It normally comes to a complete stop within 10 or 15ft of the bumper block. He went through the bumper block.”
He saw passengers punching out windows to exit the train, and instructed them to remain on board so they would not be electrocuted.
Leon Offengenden said he was in the train’s third carriage. He says he left the train to see the station collapsed around him, with wires hanging from the ceiling and water pouring down.
“It did not slow down,” he told CNN of the train. “I can tell you, it did not slow down.”