This article is from the source 'nytimes' and was first published or seen on . It last changed over 40 days ago and won't be checked again for changes.

You can find the current article at its original source at http://www.nytimes.com/2017/01/04/nyregion/lirr-derailment-atlantic-terminal-brooklyn.html

The article has changed 8 times. There is an RSS feed of changes available.

Version 2 Version 3
L.I.R.R. Derailment Injures More Than 100 in Brooklyn L.I.R.R. Derailment Injures More Than 100 in Brooklyn
(35 minutes later)
A Long Island Rail Road train crashed at a major transportation hub in Brooklyn during the morning rush on Wednesday, injuring over 100 people and disrupting the commute for thousands of people, the authorities said. A Long Island Rail Road train crashed at a major transportation hub in Brooklyn during the morning rush on Wednesday, injuring over 100 people and disrupting the commute for thousands, the authorities said.
Officials said the train rammed into a bumper as it pulled into the Atlantic Terminal station in Downtown Brooklyn around 8 a.m., knocking at least the front two cars off the tracks.Officials said the train rammed into a bumper as it pulled into the Atlantic Terminal station in Downtown Brooklyn around 8 a.m., knocking at least the front two cars off the tracks.
Donette Smith, 55, who was on the train, said people had begun to stand in the aisle as the train moved into the station. Then an “extremely hard” jolt sent everyone falling to the floor. “People just went flying,” she said. “Bodies were everywhere. It was very scary.” Donette Smith, 55, who was on board, said people had begun to stand in the aisle as the train moved into the station. Then an “extremely hard” jolt sent everyone falling to the floor. “People just went flying,” she said. “Bodies were everywhere. It was very scary.”
The passengers emerged to find the station filled with smoke. “I couldn’t see,” Ms. Smith said.The passengers emerged to find the station filled with smoke. “I couldn’t see,” Ms. Smith said.
People removed from the train on stretchers, and one person had a bloody mouth, she said. People were removed from the train on stretchers, and one person had a bloody mouth, she said.
Fire Department officials said the crash could have been far worse. One rail of Track 6, on which the train was traveling, sliced through the floor of a train car, they said. And the train crashed into what the officials characterized as a small waiting room or workroom beyond the track, causing substantial damage to the room. Fire Department officials said the crash could have been far worse. One rail of Track 6, on which the train was traveling, sliced through the floor of a train car, they said. And the train crashed into what the officials characterized as a small waiting room or workroom beyond the track, causing substantial damage.
Most of the injuries occurred when the train, which was traveling from Far Rockaway, Queens, came to an abrupt stop after crashing into the bumper block at the end of the track, said Thomas F. Prendergast, chairman of the Metropolitan Transportation Authority, which oversees the Long Island Rail Road.Most of the injuries occurred when the train, which was traveling from Far Rockaway, Queens, came to an abrupt stop after crashing into the bumper block at the end of the track, said Thomas F. Prendergast, chairman of the Metropolitan Transportation Authority, which oversees the Long Island Rail Road.
Mr. Prendergast, said the train’s operator had been supposed to brake the train before it reached the bumping block; there are no other mechanisms on the train to prevent it from hitting the block at that point. He said that he did not know whether the train had been fitted with a camera, and that the train’s operator was being interviewed. Mr. Prendergast said the train’s operator had been supposed to brake before the train reached the bumper block; there are no other mechanisms on the train to prevent it from hitting the block at that point. He said that he did not know whether the train had been fitted with a camera, and that the train’s operator was being interviewed.
Most of the passengers, who numbered between 600 and 700, were able to walk off the train. Officials said 106 people had been taken to hospitals. The most severe injury appeared to be to a woman who may have broken her leg, Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo told reporters on the scene. The Fire Department responded about 8:20 a.m., a deputy assistant fire chief, Dan Donoghue, said. Most of the passengers, who numbered between 600 and 700, were able to walk off the train. Officials said 106 people had been taken to hospitals. The most severe injury appeared to be a woman who may have broken her leg, Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo told reporters on the scene. The Fire Department responded around 8:20 a.m., said a deputy assistant fire chief, Dan Donoghue.
Photos and videos shared by commuters on social media in the moments after the crash showed the train askance on the platform, its windows broken. Firefighters escorted injured passengers away from the train while the police worked to disperse the crowd on the platform. Photographs and videos shared by commuters on social media in the moments after the crash showed the train askance on the platform, its windows broken. Firefighters escorted injured passengers away from the train while the police worked to disperse the crowd on the platform.
Steben Medina, a doorman from Sunset Park, was having a coffee at Atlantic Terminal when he heard a loud crash followed by a series of screams. “The entire structure started shaking,” said Mr. Medina, 47. “I thought a bomb had gone off or something.” Steben Medina, a doorman from Sunset Park, was having a coffee at Atlantic Terminal when he heard a loud crash followed by a series of screams. “The entire structure started shaking,” Mr. Medina, 47, said. “I thought a bomb had gone off or something.”
The derailment was reminiscent of a New Jersey Transit train crash in September that killed a woman who was standing on a platform at the terminal in Hoboken and injured more than 100 others.The derailment was reminiscent of a New Jersey Transit train crash in September that killed a woman who was standing on a platform at the terminal in Hoboken and injured more than 100 others.
In that crash, an arriving train also plowed through the bumper at the end of a track and hit the station.In that crash, an arriving train also plowed through the bumper at the end of a track and hit the station.
In in Brooklyn on Wednesday, Governor Cuomo said the Hoboken crash had been “much worse — that train was coming in much faster, did much more damage, hurt many more people.’ In Brooklyn on Wednesday, Mr. Cuomo said the Hoboken crash had been “much worse — that train was coming in much faster, did much more damage, hurt many more people.”
Officials said that investigators were looking to determine why the train did not stop short of its bumper. Officials said that investigators were looking to determine why the train did not stop short of the bumper.