Philadelphia Mayor Michael Nutter has called the accident site “an absolute, disastrous mess” adding, “I’ve never seen anything like this in my life.”
Amtrak Northeast Regional Train 188 was traveling from Washington to New York carrying 238 passengers and five crew members when it derailed about 9:30 p.m. Tuesday in the Port Richmond neighborhood of Philadelphia, flying off the tracks and tearing cars apart. Here are the latest updates:
1. Death toll: Six people are confirmed dead and area hospitals have treated more than 200. There is not yet a count of the number of people missing or not accounted for. A Naval Academy midshipman is among those killed. The train was en route to New York from Washington with 238 passengers and five crew members aboard.
2. Recorder recovered: A “black box” recording device has been recovered and sent to an Amtrak analysis center in Delaware. The device includes a forward-facing camera.
3. The investigation: The cause of the derailment is unknown. It occurred at a curve with speed restrictions on the Northeast Corridor’s Frankford Junction. The engine and all seven passenger cars derailed. National Transportation Safety Board investigators arrived in Philadelphia Wednesday morning and were set to probe the track, train signals, train operations and mechanics and human performance.
4. Conductor interviewed: Mayor Michael Nutter says the train operator suffered injuries, but received medical treatment and had or was giving a statement to police.
5. SEPTA incident: Shortly before the derailment, a SEPTA Regional Rail train on the same corridor was hit by a projectile, but there was no immediate indication the two incidents were connected.
SOURCE: Philly.com
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