Amtrak Train Derails In Vermont, Colorado Man Tweets Pics
NORTHFIELD, Vt. (CBS4/AP) - An Amtrak train destined for Washington, D.C., derailed in central Vermont on Monday after striking rocks that fell from a ledge onto the tracks.
Seven people were injured, including one who was airlifted to a hospital.
A couple was onboard whose son shared photos on social media of the derailment. Brian Bell is a Fort Collins, Colorado, resident and shared the following tweets:
The Vermonter train carrying 98 passengers and four crew members derailed at around 10:30 a.m. in Northfield, about 20 miles southwest of Montpelier.
At an afternoon news conference, officials said the train hit rocks that had fallen onto the tracks from a ledge above. One locomotive and one passenger car went over an embankment, and three other cars left the track but remained upright.
One of the injured was airlifted to Dartmouth-Hitchcock Medical Center in New Hampshire and was being evaluated in the emergency room, spokesman Rick Adams said. Six others went to Central Vermont Medical Center with injuries including neck, back and shoulder pain and lightheadedness.
State officials said a freight train had passed over the same tracks Sunday night with no problems.
The Vermonter takes the route daily, beginning in northern Vermont. The 13-hour, 45-minute trip passes through cities including Burlington, Vermont, Springfield, Massachusetts, and New York, with D.C. as the final destination.
At least several dozen passengers were loaded onto school buses to be taken to an armory at nearby Norwich University.
Investigators for the Federal Railroad Administration were on the scene.
Vermont State Police and local fire and rescue agencies responded to the derailment, and numerous emergency vehicles were at the site.
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