VIA train derails en-route to Toronto from Niagara Falls; 3 dead
Posted Feb 27, 2012 05:54:03 AM.
This article is more than 5 years old.
BURLINGTON, ONT. – Terrified passengers were sent flying through the air when a Toronto-bound train derailed, killing three engineers and injuring 32 passengers.
Train 92 was carrying 75 passengers from Niagara Falls, Ontario when it left the tracks around 3:30 yesterday afternoon in Burlington, west of Toronto.
The locomotive and one passenger car flipped onto their sides and crashed into a small trackside building.
Another two passenger cars were forced off the tracks into a L-shape.
The three VIA engineers who were killed were riding in the cab of the locomotive.
One of those engineers was a trainee, while a fourth VIA worker was also injured.
Halton police chief Gary Crowell says the bodies of the three VIA Rail engineers were removed from the wreckage last night.
The black box recorder from the train has been recovered and may reveal the cause of the crash.
The Transportation Safety Board is expected to have at least six investigators at the scene today.
Area residents described a chaotic scene of emergency vehicles, sirens blaring and helicopters buzzing overhead the normally busy rail corridor.
The rail corridor carries both freight and passenger trains and bustles with rush-hour commuter traffic during the weekday.
The Transportation Safety Board is investigating.
Locally, service out of the Kitchener VIA Rail station is not affected by any of the delays and cancellations related to the accident.
Anyone seeking information about passengers who may have been on the train that derailed may call a special number set up by VIA Rail at 1-888-842-6141.
You may follow this link to the VIA Rail website.
