Metrolink Train Slowly Derails Near LA's Union Station, No One Injured

The mishap occurred at 4:55 p.m. as the train, coming in from the north, went off its tracks near Vignes and Bauchet streets, according to the Los Angeles Fire Department.

From Hal Eisner:
If all goes as well as Metrolink officials hope the system's trains should be back on track in the morning. About 10:30pm Tuesday night heavy equipment was being moved into place to help lift the 4-car-train's last two cars back on the tracks. The goal is for that to be done by midnight. If all goes as planned the morning commute should be find according to Metrolink Spokesman Jeff Lustgarten who says "it was a tough night."

Just before 5pm the train derailed. Why? It's not clear. The 100 passengers were walked over to Union Station to catch other trains. One woman was taken in a wheelchair, but Lustgarten says she was not injured in the derailment.

The derailment caused for 3 of 5 tracks to become inoperable which meant thousands of commuters had to be reassigned other trains to get to their destinations.

It wasn't easy, but Metrolink officials say they got through it. Passenger Mark Brien, who was on derailed train #906 told FOX 11 "The train derailed. It was going very slowly. The switch went off at the wrong time it sounded like." He says at the moment of the derailment "in part of the train we all went this way and the other half this way and then some on the ground so, we were stuck."

When we asked him his reaction to the derailment he took it in strike. "No big deal," he said, "we weren't going fast enough we're going very slow."

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