L.A. Commuter Train Derails, Injuring 28
Update, 9:20 a.m.: Per the Associated Press, the number of injured in Tuesday morning's train-truck collision and derailment in Oxnard has been revised downward to 28. Four of those hurt are reported to be in critical condition.
The Los Angeles Times reports that the truck involved in the incident was already on fire as a Los Angeles-bound Metrolink train approached a level crossing at 79 mph.
"The conductor noticed the car early and established emergency protocol. He anticipated the crash from a far distance," Oxnard Fire Battalion Chief Sergio Martinez told the AP.
Three of the trains four cars overturned after the collision. A fourth car and the train's locomotive remained upright.
There were 51 passengers on board and 28 were taken to local hospitals. The other 23 were not injured.
Patients suffered injuries including significant head trauma, broken limbs and back and neck injuries, emergency service personnel said. Metrolink spokesman Jeff Lustgarten said the train's engineer was among those injured.
Original post: A Los Angeles-bound commuter train hit a truck and derailed early Tuesday, injuring at least 30 people.
The predawn accident occurred in the Ventura County city of Oxnard, about 65 miles west-northwest of downtown Los Angeles, and sent three cars tumbling onto their sides. A fourth car derailed but remained upright.
KTLA-TV quoted Oxnard police as saying a city-owned truck had been struck and was on fire when emergency crews arrived. Police said the truck's driver fled the scene but was later found and detained.
The Los Angeles Times describes the scene along the tracks after the 5:45 a.m. incident:
Video from the scene showed dozens of firefighters and paramedics at the scene parked near a derailed car that was half on the tracks and the other half occupying a lane of traffic.
Several tarps were laid out where victims were sprawled out being treated. Others were on stretchers being wheeled into waiting ambulances.
Three of the four cars that derailed were equipped with a “crash energy management” system meant to absorb the shock of a crash and redistribute force away from passengers, a Metrolink official said.
The fourth car, a bicycle car, was not equipped with system.
The National Transportation Safety Board, which investigates crashes like this, said in a tweet they are aware of the incident and are ‘’currently gathering information.”
In 2008, a Metrolink train collided with a freight train on shared tracks in the San Fernando Valley, killing 25 people.