Amtrak Train Derailed at Over 100 Miles an Hour

A horrific crash and one that could have easily been prevented.

At WSJ, "Amtrak Crash: Train Hit Curve Going Over 100 MPH":

PHILADELPHIA—An Amtrak train involved in a fatal crash here was traveling at more than 100 miles an hour, twice the speed limit, as it entered a sharp curve where it derailed Tuesday night, federal officials said Wednesday.

As rescue personnel picked through the train’s wreckage and local hospitals cared for injured passengers, the National Transportation Safety Board said a “black box” data recorder put the train’s speed at 106 mph just before the curve. The train’s engineer applied emergency brakes, but several seconds later, the train’s speed was only down to 102 mph, when the data recorder stopped.

“As we know, it takes a long time to decelerate a train,” said NTSB member Robert Sumwalt in a news conference.

Referring to the application of the brakes before the crash, he added, “You’re supposed to enter the curve at 50 miles an hour. He was already in the curve.”

A law-enforcement official identified the engineer as Brandon Bostian of Queens, N.Y. Mr. Bostian wasn’t at home Wednesday, and it couldn’t be determined if he had retained an attorney.

At least seven people were killed in the crash, including a midshipman at the U.S. Naval Academy and a technology company CEO. Eight others were in critical condition, and 30 remained hospitalized.

“We are heartbroken at what has happened here,” Philadelphia Mayor Michael Nutter said during a news conference.

Passengers described a chaotic and frightening scene that began 10 to 15 minutes after Amtrak’s Northeast Regional Train 188, en route from Washington, D.C., to New York City, left Philadelphia’s 30th Street Station at 9:10 p.m. on Tuesday.

Andrew Brenner, 29, a public-relations expert who lives in Washington, said he was relaxing and texting in the last car with his shoes off. He said he noticed that the train seemed to be taking a curve rather fast, but that it didn’t cause much alarm.

Then, the train jolted and swayed. Within moments, Mr. Brenner said he and other passengers were tossed around cars as seats were ripped from the train floor.

“I got thrown like a penny,” said Mr. Brenner, who said he weighs 250 pounds. “That is how violent this was.”

After the crash, Mr. Brenner said he was transported along with other passengers by bus to a hospital, where X-rays showed damage to his vertebrae.

Of the total 243 people on the train, which included five crew members, more than 200 were injured, city officials said.

The locomotive and all seven passenger cars of the train went off the tracks at a tight curve at Frankford Junction, just northeast of Center City, where the Federal Railroad Administration said trains aren’t authorized to exceed 50 mph.

Mr. Sumwalt of the NTSB said it was too soon to determine if the excessive speed caused the derailment. Investigators don’t know whether the train accelerated steadily or suddenly to 106 mph, he added.

The NTSB was studying other factors, such as track and mechanical conditions, and train signals, Mr. Sumwalt said.

More.

Also, "Midshipman, Associated Press Employee Among the Dead in Philadelphia Amtrak Crash."