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Metro Derailment In DC: Red Line Derailment At Farragut North Stn

by amyellensoden | February 12, 2010 at 10:39 am

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A metro train carrying 340 passengers derailed this morning around 10:15am in Washington, DC. The metro derailment occurred on the Red Line train as it was departing from the Farragut North station in the downtown Washington area. The Red Line derailment happened as the front wheels of the red line train slipped off of the tracks as the train was moving out of the Farragut North station.

Three people were injured when the Red Line train derailed, and the 340 passengers in the six-car underground train had to wait in the dark for 90 minutes before exiting the subway. The metro station was re-opened about two hours after the metro derailment.

Riders said the red line train stopped abruptly while departing the Farragut North station, in downtown area. They said they waited for about 90 minutes in the dark before being allowed to exit the below-ground station.

The Washington Area Metropolitan Transit Authority says a preliminary report shows the front wheels of the train's first car slipped off the tracks as it left the station.

It was the first two cars of the metro Red Line train that derailed The 340 passengers were removed from the first two Red Line cars and transported to the train's remaining cars. Roads surrounding the incident at Farragut North have since re-opened.

The Washington metro system has been suffering from technical problems since last year. An incident back in June 2009 involving another Red Line train hitting the back of another left nine people dead. Two more metro employees have died since that incident when attempting to resolve metro issues on the tracks.