04 January 2024 , 21:01
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A subway train crashed into the back of another train at a Manhattan station on Thursday resulting in a derailment, authorities have announced.
24 people are reported injured in the crash but none of the injuries were severe, police said. The northbound 1 passenger train was evacuated immediately following the incident. Reports began to emerged of the crash at around 3pm, with Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA) officials saying a commuter train came into the back of a work train at the 96th Street train station.
It was reportedly a slow-speed and minor derailment according to officials, who added that it happened as the subway was leaving the station. The conductor of the train was one of the 24 requiring treatment for a minor injury.
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Firefighters helped to evacuate passengers from the partially derailed train (Peter Gerber)New York City Transit subway (NYCT) said the crash occurred after a trains brakes were wrongly activated, adding that they are "investigating why" this happened. Videos from on the ground and nearby buildings show masses of emergency services swarming the area where the crash occurred. Authorities are now in the early stages of an investigation, with no other details regarding the crash immediately available.
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The derailment has caused travel chaos in New York City, with the NYCT stating there is a "major disruption" to the 1/2/3 service. "There is a major disruption to 1/2/3 service while emergency teams assist passengers and conduct an investigation after a train derailed near 96 St. There is no 1/2/3 service in most of Manhattan," it posted on Twitter.
"While our teams investigate, consider the following travel alternatives: For service between Manhattan and Brooklyn, consider N/Q/R trains. For service between Manhattan and The Bronx, consider Bx19. For service in Manhattan, consider A/B/C/D trains," NYCT continued.
Travel chaos has engulfed Manhattan as emergency services continue to respond (Peter Gerber)Train derailments aren't as uncommon in the US as one might expect. The Bureau of Transportation Statistics record 54,539 train derailments from 1990 to 2021, an average of 1,704 per year, or more than four every day, the Independent reported. Despite this, derailments very rarely result in death, with the fatality rate at just four people per year over that period.
In February last year an 150-car Ohio freight train carrying toxic chemicals came of the tracks in the town of East Palestine, with toxic particulate matter being thrown up into the air as the train caught fire - and some pieces of the crash rolling into nearby waterways.
18 people were injured in the crash which has been described as "slow-speed" (Peter Gerber)Soon afterwards, the bipartisan Railway Safety Act was introduced which aimed to forced freight trains to undergo more rigorous safety checks - particularly if they were carrying toxic matter.
The bill was introduced by Ohio Sen Sherrod Brown, a Democrat, and Sen J.D. Vance, a Republican, among others. As of October 2023, the Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) recorded a huge 742 train derailments in 2023, according to USA Fact.