Amtrak train derails after colliding with empty vehicle and tow truck in Michigan – Oakland Press
Black Friday
Your email is already registered. Please subscribe to The Oakland Press to follow.
$6 for one year of standard digital access
Are you already a subscriber?
An Amtrak train sits on the track after colliding with an empty vehicle and derailing on Thursday, November 16, 2023, near New Buffalo, Michigan. Authorities say 11 people were injured when a Chicago-bound train derailed in southwest Michigan. (WBND via AP)
NEW BUFFALO, Mich. (AP) — A Chicago-bound Amtrak train carrying 200 passengers derailed after colliding with an unoccupied vehicle and a tow truck in southwest Michigan, authorities said Friday.
“The engineer and approximately 10 passengers sustained non-life-threatening injuries and were treated by local ambulance services,” the Berrien County Sheriff’s Office said.
The train derailed but remained upright.
The accident occurred Thursday evening near New Buffalo in the southwestern corner of Michigan, about 70 miles east of Chicago.
The vehicle was stuck on the tracks and was being removed when the train and tow truck collided with it, the sheriff’s office said.
The train’s engineer received no warning of a vehicle on the tracks because no one contacted Amtrak, railroad spokesman Mark Magliari said.
He said: “There are big blue signs at this crossing with a phone number.”
Passenger Riley Kozlov said the accident caused a fire outside the train.
“I hit my head a little bit at first — the impact just happened,” Kozlov told WNDU-TV in South Bend, Indiana. “It felt like it was 20 seconds long, and everyone was confused.”
The occupants were transported to New Buffalo High School. Some were picked up by family and friends while others continued their journey to Chicago on buses arranged by Amtrak, the sheriff’s office said.
Amtrak has three routes for people traveling between Chicago and several communities in Michigan. At least eight trains were canceled Friday while investigators remained at the scene.
View more at Auckland Press
