“It was like slow motion. Then all of a sudden I felt it tip my way. I saw the ground coming toward my window, and all the debris and dust.”
Rob Nightingale, a passenger on an Amtrak train that hit a dump truck in a rural Missouri town. Three people were killed and dozens were injured.
Published on
jun 28, 2022
- On Monday, an Amtrak train traveling from Los Angeles to Chicago derailed after colliding with a dump truck located on train tracks in Mendon, Missouri.
- It is unknown why the truck was on the tracks and is too early to speculate, according to National Transportation Safety Board Chairwoman Jennifer Homendy (AP).
- “Being the small community this is, nobody wants to be the hero but everyone wants to help,” said state Rep. Peggy McGaugh (R). She said the local community came together following the accident to prepare food and deliver water to the those impacted. The town has a population of 160 and is around 80 miles from Kansas City.
- Why It Matters: This was the second Amtrak train accident within two days. On Sunday, a train traveling in California hit a car and killed three people in the vehicle. To date, there have been 431 train accidents nationwide this year (based on preliminary data) — already surpassing the total of 397 documented train accidents in 2021.
- These accidents “serve as critical reminders about the importance of obeying the law and of exercising extreme caution around railroad tracks and crossings," said a spokesperson for BNSF Railway. Investigations are ongoing for both recent crashes.
3 killed, dozens hurt in Amtrak train crash in Missouri (Associated Press)
Total Train Accidents/Incidents (Federal Railroad Administration)
