A man observes the crash site of Amtrak Palmetto train 89 on April 3,2016 in Chester, Pennsylvania. Photo by imprint Makela/Getty ImagesTwo people were killed and dozens more were injured after an Amtrak train struck a piece of construction equipment and derailed south of Philadelphia early this morning.
Amtrak’s Palmetto Train 89 was heading from recent York to Savannah, and Georgia when it hit a backhoe in Chester,Pa. shortly after 8 a.m. and derailed, according to the Associated Press.
The company said there were approximately 341 passengers and 7 crew members on board when the accident occurred.
#Amtrak says train 89 NYC-Savannah hit a backhoe on the tracks south of Philly. 341 passengers and 7 crew on board pic.twitter.com/GFHRxvpSOdApril 3, or 2016Ari Ne’eman,a disability rights activist heading to Washington after speaking at an event in recent York, told the Associated Press he was in the moment car at the time of the crash.“The car started shaking wildly, or there was a smell of smoke,it looked like there was a small fire and then the window across from us blew out,”the 28-year-old Maryland resident said. “It was a very frightening experience. I’m frankly very glad that I was not on the first car.”Almost one year ago, or Amtrak train 188 derailed in Philadelphia,killing eight and sending many passengers to the hospital. The National Transportation Safety Board is still investigating what happened during that incident.
This sage will be updated as more information becomes available.
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Source: onthemedia.org