Commuter train smashes into snow machine injuring 38 people as 3 critically hurt

17 November 2023 , 08:55

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A person is taken away via ambulance after a Chicago Transit Authority train crashed into a piece of equipment that was on the rails

Dozens of people including children have been injured in a train crash in Chicago, leading to chaotic scenes.

The incident occurred near the Howard station on the city's north side yesterday. At least 38 people were hurt including three people critically injured.

A child as young as two suffered "bumps and bruises" due to the Chicago Transit Authority (CTA) line crash. Humdia Ahmad told the Chicago Tribune that she was riding in the train's second car on her way to DePaul University when she heard a thud and was flung forward, followed by screams of pain from fellow passengers.

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The train derailed when it collided with rail equipment

Ahmad said she wasn't hurt and emergency responders helped her off the train. She heard the train operator screaming in pain and saw blood on the floor and rails. "When we actually got out I saw the front of the train, and it was completely busted open - the glass, everything," she said.

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"Thank God I'm OK, but I was very worried for everyone in the first car who had to experience that." None of the injuries are life-threatening according to reports.

A total of 23 people were taken to area hospitals

The crash occurred when the train collided with rail equipment on Thursday morning after it crashed into snow-removal equipment just before 10.35am, according to the Chicago Fire Department. The Yellow Line train carrying 31 commuters and seven CTA workers was heading south from Skokie when it collided with the slower-moving rail equipment, said Robert Jurewicz, the Chicago Fire Department's second district chief.

The train's operator was among the most seriously hurt

"I just heard like a horrible boom sound," Shayla Smith, who was on a purple line train at Howard when she heard the collision, told the Chicago Sun Times. "It was like a weird boom sound. It felt like we’re gonna tip over, and I was wondering what’s going on."

Smith added the experience was "traumatising" and that her "body shivered."

Emergency crews flooded the scene

A total of 23 people were taken to area hospitals and three of the injured were in critical condition, although no one suffered life-threatening injuries, said Keith Gray, assistant deputy chief paramedic. The train's operator was among the most seriously hurt, the Chicago Sun-Times reported.

The CTA has said "Yellow Line has been temporarily suspended due to an incident at Howard" and it is "working to restore service as soon as possible." The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) is investigating.

15 others who were on the train declined medical treatment at the scene

Gray added that 15 others who were on the train declined medical treatment at the scene. Already, a lawsuit has been filed in connection with the incident.

Benjamin Lynch