Train derailment in NY injures dozens
NEW YORK ( AFP) — A New York commuter train derailed outside the city late Saturday, authorities said, without immediately confirming reports that dozens have minor injuries.
“The 9:22 p.m. train from Penn due Huntington at 10:28 p.m. has been canceled due to a train derailment near New Hyde Park,” the Long Island Rail Road (LIRR) said on Twitter.
Earlier service had been suspended on the same line due to the train’s collision with a smaller service vehicle.
Passengers were evacuated, the LIRR showed on its feed.
The local ABC television affiliate reported there were four injuries; other sources said there were dozens, none of them serious.
Just last week, a commuter train slammed into a New Jersey train station.
The morning rush-hour collision at the Hoboken terminal killed one person and injured 114, causing major destruction at the transit choke point and gateway to Manhattan.
Photos from the scene of the wreck posted on social media showed at least two of the derailed train cars leaning upright but askew and partly off the track.
People riding on the train told local media they saw sparks or fire outside the windows after the train, which had been moving at a normal speed, began shaking mildly, then more violently before striking something and coming to a halt.
The New Hyde Park stop is just east of the border with the New York City borough of Queens. The rail line, one of the busiest commuter routes into America’s largest city, said the derailment had forced suspension of service in both directions.