US Amtrak train derails, leaves 3 people dead

Three people were killed following a US Amtrak train derailment 64km south of Seattle in Washington State. Authorities are currently looking into the crash and are yet to determine its cause.

A large object on the railway possibly caused the accident. The object was found close to where a train plunged off a bridge. The accident could have resulted from a stray piece of machinery on the tracks, The New York Post reports.

Track maintenance issue is reportedly not a concern. It was not clear how fast the train was moving, but it was supposed to dramatically slow before it enters the curve where the crash took place. Photos show 12 rail cars and one of the engines jumped the tracks.

The National Transportation Safety Board said it was too soon to determine if high speed played a role in the crash. Officials said an engineering device intended to stop the train before accidents occurred was not activated.

Initial reports have stated that the accident took six lives. Authorities eventually revised it to three after emergency workers searched through the carriages.

Steilacoom Public Safety Department’s Detective Chris Bailey said the conductor of the train and its engineer survived the crash, but both were disorientated. Bailey was among the first responders on the scene.

Ed Troyer, the spokesman for Pierce County Sheriff, told reporters of motorists that had been injured. But there were no other casualties aside from those on the train. In response to the accident, Gov Jay Inslee has declared a state of emergency.

Amtrak said 77 commuters and seven crew members were aboard the vehicle when it derailed around 64 km south of Seattle outside of Dupont. According to CHI Franciscan Health, 77 people were sent to hospitals in Thurston and Pierce counties.

Some patients were taken to hospitals like St Joseph Medical Center in Tacoma, St Anthony Hospital in Gig Harbor, Tacoma General Hospital and St Clare Hospital in Lakewood. Four of those injured were reportedly “level red” patients.

One of the passengers, Chris Karnes, said they seemed to be moving normally during the inaugural trip until he felt the jolt. “It was a split second between that and being launched into the seats in front of us,” The Seattle Times reports him as saying.

The train totally blocked the southbound lanes of Interstate 5. Alternate routes in the region were being crowded.