9 dead, many hurt in D.C. rail crash

WASHINGTON — A rush-hour collision between two crowded trains Monday on Washington's subway system killed at least nine people and injured dozens, trapping commuters in a stack of twisted rail cars that rescuers were still searching hours later.

Witnesses say a train near the Fort Totten station on the Metro's Red Line was rear-ended by another train, which climbed atop the stopped cars ahead of it and left a two-level snarl of debris.

The operator of the approaching train was among the dead, authorities said. The mayor's office identified her as Jeanice McMillan, 42.

Rescue workers propped up ladders to help survivors escape from the upper train cars. Seats from the smashed cars spilled out onto the track.

District of Columbia Fire Chief Dennis Rubin said rescuers treated 76 patients at the scene in the first two hours, including six who died. Three bodies were located in the wreckage late Monday night.

"This is the deadliest incident in the history of Metro," Washington City Councilman Jim Graham said. He described the wreckage with a single word: "horror."

The accident occurred on a curved section of track after a long straightaway, during clear weather, on the subway system's most heavily used line. It was about 5 p.m. local time, among the system's busiest hours.

Jervis Bryant, a Prince George's County teacher, said he heard the collision from a house 2 ½ blocks away and arrived on the scene within five minutes.

"We saw the folks banging on the windows trying to get out," he said. Rescue people came and pried the door open, he said, and people streamed out.

Officials don't expect to know what caused the crash for several days.

Metro chief John Catoe said the first train was stopped on the tracks, waiting for another train to clear the station ahead, when the trailing train plowed into it.

The only other fatal accident in the Metro's 33-year history was a 1982 derailment underneath downtown that killed three people. A collision in 2004 caused minor injuries.

Metro trains generally are operated by a computer system; operators can override the controls on orders from dispatchers.

"Our safety officials are investigating and will continue to investigate until we determine why this happened and what must be done to ensure it never happens again," Catoe said.

Until last September, rail systems — much like their airline counterparts — were cruising with far fewer accidents than in previous years and decades. The number of train accidents per mile dropped nearly 30 percent from 1990 to 2008, according to Federal Railroad Administration records.

But last September, a commuter rail train crashed with a freight rail in Los Angeles and 25 people died. The crash was blamed on an engineer on the commuter rail texting on a cellphone.

Last month about 50 people were injured in Boston when a trolley rear-ended another trolley. The conductor admitted to texting when the crash took place.

"I'm not sure if everyone in the safety system is paying the proper attention that needs to be paid," said Barry Sweedler, a San Francisco-based safety consultant and former investigator and manager at the National Transportation Safety Board. "These things shouldn't be happening."

However, Robert Lauby, a former NTSB rail investigator, said the increase in accidents could well be mere coincidence.

"Just because you had them doesn't mean there's a specific issue that caused them," Lauby said.

Additional information from The Associated Press.