| Online: | |
| Visits: | |
| Stories: |
| Story Views | |
| Now: | |
| Last Hour: | |
| Last 24 Hours: | |
| Total: | |
Dozens of Amtrak passengers injured as train smashes into truck
Dozens of Amtrak passengers injured as train smashes into truck
IDozens of Amtrak passengers injured as train smashes into truck that had stalled on North Carolina tracks and flips over
New York-bound Amtrak train smashed into a truck that was struggling to make a turn in Halifax around noon
Two cars were derailed but injuries were only minor, the transportation authority said.
Dozens of passengers have suffered injuries after an Amtrak train crashed into a tractor-trailer that had become stuck on railroad tracks in North Carolina and toppled onto its side.
Startling images from the scene show the truck, which was carrying a mobile home beneath a blue tarp, smashed to pieces across the tracks in Halifax and two derailed train cars lying nearby.
Halifax County Sheriff’s Chief Deputy Bruce Temple said the accident happened around noon and that the train’s first two cars were derailed in the incident, although the second car that derailed was holding baggage.
Some passengers were hurt and WRAL-TV reported that as many as 40 had been treated for injuries. No deaths were reported and that none of the injuries appeared to be life threatening, authorities said.
A witness driving behind the truck told WRAL that the vehicle had been trying to navigate a left-hand turn across the tracks for around 15 minutes before the crash and was getting help from a state trooper.
Then they saw the train come into view.
‘There was a massive jerk and we were kind of thrown forward a little bit, and the train came to a sudden stop,’ passenger Charlotte Story told WRAL-TV. ‘I couldn’t tell you if it was trying to slow down or not. There was no whistle. It came completely out of the blue.’
Sheriff’s Major Scott Hall said from the crash scene that some passengers were taken to a local hospital by ambulance, but others were able to climb aboard a shuttle bus to be taken for examination.
Other passengers were taken to a nearby government center where they would meet with American Red Cross officials and investigators.
Of the passengers on the train, around 170 were unhurt, authorities told WRAL.
The Amtrak train was the Carolinian, which runs between Charlotte, North Carolina, and New York each day. It was headed north to New York City at the time of the crash.
The truck belonged to Guy M. Turner Inc., an industrial transport specialist based in Greensboro. The company said they are investigating.
The North Carolina Department of Transportation is also investigating.
‘We are relieved that there are no fatalities reported at this time, and our thoughts and prayers are with those who were injured,’ Transportation Secretary Tony Tata said in a statement. ‘Safety is always our top priority, and we continue to urge everyone to use extreme caution and stay alert when crossing our railroad tracks.’
Authorities have closed nearby roads as they clear up the scene. Halifax is about 80 miles northeast of Raleigh.
