Amtrak Tunnel Fire Injures 5 and Halts Penn Station Service After Work Trains Collide
Updated
Updated · WABC-TV · May 29
Amtrak Tunnel Fire Injures 5 and Halts Penn Station Service After Work Trains Collide
19 articles · Updated · WABC-TV · May 29
Five railroad workers were hurt — two seriously — after an Amtrak maintenance vehicle caught fire in a Hudson River tunnel early Friday, snarling Penn Station commutes for NJ Transit, Amtrak and LIRR riders.
Two Amtrak work trains appear to have collided, MTA chief Janno Lieber said, damaging the electrical system and igniting the fire in the tunnel between New York and New Jersey.
LIRR service resumed just before 6 a.m., while NJ Transit and Amtrak restarted around 1 p.m., but officials warned of continued delays and cancellations as commuters diverted to PATH and crowded Newark Penn Station.
FDNY battled heavy smoke, heat and electrical hazards through an emergency exit after a second alarm response around 1:30 a.m., when black smoke billowed onto 10th Avenue and 31st Street.
The disruption renewed criticism of Amtrak's 100-plus-year-old tunnel infrastructure, with New York transit leaders and Gov. Kathy Hochul saying repeated Penn Station incidents are undermining the region's rail network.
With advanced monitoring systems now available, why does America's busiest rail corridor remain so vulnerable to a single point of failure?
After this crippling fire, is the delayed Gateway Tunnel project the only viable solution to secure the region's rail system?