- The westbound Empire Builder train with 141 passengers and 16 crew derailed near Joplin.
- Eight of the 10 cars on the train fell off the rails.
- The tragedy occurred at the end of Rail Safety Week.
Amtrak joined federal safety officials on Sunday to investigate a train derailment in Montana that has left at least three dead, seven people hospitalized and rural communities scrambling to provide food and shelter to stunned survivors .
The westbound Empire Builder train with 141 passengers and 17 crew derailed on Saturday afternoon near Joplin, a town of less than 200 people a few miles from the Canadian border in Liberty County. The tragedy occurred as Amtrak wrapped up its annual National Rail Safety Week.
“The NTSB is launching a team to investigate Saturday’s derailment of Amtrak’s Empire Builder train,” the National Transportation Safety Board said on Twitter, adding that the team would be based in Great Falls, MT.
The 14-member team includes investigators and rail signal specialists, NTSB spokesman Eric Weiss said. He said the derailment did not involve any other train or equipment. The train included 10 railroad cars and two locomotives, he said.
Amtrak CEO Bill Flynn expressed his condolences to the victims and said the company was working with the NTSB, the Federal Railroad Administration and local law enforcement, sharing their “sense of urgency” to determine what that happened.
“However, until the investigation is complete, we will not comment further on the accident itself,” Flynn said in the statement. “The NTSB will identify the cause (s) of this accident, and Amtrak is committed to taking appropriate action to prevent a similar accident in the future. “
Aerial views of the train to Seattle from Chicago showed at least seven derailed cars, including three lying on their sides.
“We are deeply saddened to learn that local authorities now confirm that three people have lost their lives as a result of this accident,” Amtrak said in a statement. “We have a team on the ground to fully support the NTSB in its investigation into the cause of the derailment.”
Megan Vandervest, a passenger on the train, tweeted moments after the sinking that she was not injured.
“Everyone in our group is fine. I’m not sure about everyone’s status on the train,” she said on twitter. “We are currently waiting to be taken by bus away from the stage.”
She thanked everyone who reached out with kind words, saying, “We feel very lucky to be alive.”
Residents of communities near the crash site quickly mobilized to help.
Chester City Councilor Rachel Ghekiere said she and others helped around 50 to 60 passengers who were brought to a school.
“I went to school and helped with water, food, wiping dirt from faces,” she said. “They seemed tired, shaken up but happy to be where they were. Some looked more disheveled than others, depending on where they were on the train.
Jesse Anderson, owner of the motel and adjoining convenience store, spoke to a few passengers on the doomed train, passengers who are now worried about traveling by train again.
“A couple said they were having a very difficult journey,” Anderson said, adding that the Michigan couple travel several times a year on Amtrak to see their son in Seattle, the train’s final destination.
“They noticed that it was not a very smooth ride.”
To mark Rail Safety Week, which ran from September 20 through Sunday, Amtrak announced that nearly 500 police and sheriff departments from 43 states and the District of Columbia are joining its own police department and to an organization called Operation Lifesaver to conduct “Operation Clear Track.”
The fifth annual event aimed to enforce state laws on railway crossings and trespassing while raising awareness of the importance of making “safe choices near railroad tracks and crossings.” Operation Clear Track was created to help reduce the estimated 2,000 serious injuries and deaths that occur on the nation’s rail tracks each year, Amtrak said.
Contributors: Lee Vernoy, Great Falls Tribune; The Associated Press
