Commuter train crashes into busy Hoboken terminal
NEW YORK – A commuter train plowed into a platform inside New Jersey Transit’s Hoboken terminal during the Thursday morning rush-hour, killing at least one person and injuring as many as 100, officials said.
Witnesses reported seeing bruised and bloodied passengers, including one woman pinned underneath concrete, after the crash occurred just before 9 a.m. ET inside the teeming train station.
New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie told MSNBC at least one person was killed and all victims from inside the station were removed in the morning. Initial reports provided to NBC News placed the number of fatalities at three.
Jersey City Medical Center said it was treating over 50 patients, including three who were in serious condition with orthopedic injuries and deep cuts, Chief Medical Officer Kenneth Garay said at a news conference. Most of those wounded had minor injuries and were in triage units, he added.
A commuter train plowed into a platform inside New Jersey Transit’s Hoboken terminal during the Thursday morning rush-hour, killing at least one person and injuring as many as 100,officials said.
The Hoboken terminal, located across the river from Lower Manhattan, is one of the busiest in the greater New York City area, with an estimated 50,000 commuters passing through daily. The trains do not have seat belts.
Photos taken from the scene and posted on social media showed major damage to the more than century-old station, with part of its metal roof collapsed and mangled steel and shattered glass on the ground.
The train originated from Spring Valley, New York, on the Pascack Valley line and was expected to arrive in Hoboken at 8:38 a.m. The accident occurred at 8:45 a.m. on Track Five, a NJ Transit spokeswoman said.
While the investigation is in its preliminary stages, there was no initial sign of terrorism or that it was a deliberate act, two local law enforcement officials said.
The Hoboken station — a historic facility and NJ Transit’s fifth-busiest — was the site of another crash on a different train line that left more than 30 hurt in 2011.
