MARCH 9, 2015
NEAR ROCKY MOUNT, NORTH CAROLINA
At least 40 people were injured after an Amtrak train
crashed into a tractor-trailer that was in the middle of the tracks in North
Carolina this afternoon, authorities said.
The North Carolina Department of Transportation has now
reported that 15 passengers were transported to a nearby hospital by ambulance
while 25 others were transported by bus to the hospital for treatment,
indicating that their injuries were less severe. There were 173 uninjured
passengers who were taken by bus to to Richmond, the agency said.
The Amtrak train operating from Charlotte to New York,
"struck a vehicle on the tracks at a grade crossing approximately 30 miles
north of Rocky Mount, N.C.," Amtrak said in a statement to ABC News.
"There were 212 passengers and eight crew members on board and initial
reports are that several passengers have been injured and taken to local
medical facilities for treatment. At this time, none of the injuries have been
reported as life-threatening. Local emergency responders are on the scene and
an investigation is ongoing."
Video from the scene shows that at least one cabin of the train
derailed and flipped over on its side. The Federal Railway Authority later
clarified that two of the train's seven cars and the locomotive derailed.
A witness to the crash said that the tractor-trailer
appeared to be lingering on the tracks while trying to make a difficult right
turn.
Leslie Cipriani told the Associated Press that the
tractor-trailer tried backing up several times but did not make it before the
grade crossing's cross bars hit the vehicle.
"There are active warning devices at this
crossing," a Federal Railway Administration official told ABC News.
The Halifax County Sheriff's office confirmed that there
were injuries but did not specify the degree of injury. No deaths have been
reported.
Emergency crews are still on the scene, authorities said.
Amtrak officials said that people with questions about their
friends and family aboard this train can call the following number for
information: 800-523-9101.