MSNBCAt least 9 killed as California trains derail
Scores more injured in L.A. suburb of Glendale
GLENDALE, Calif. - A Metrolink commuter train in suburban Los Angeles struck a vehicle, derailed and sideswiped another train early Wednesday, killing nine people and injuring more than 100 others, authorities said.
Los Angeles County Sheriff Lee Baca said it appears a vehicle was deliberately placed on the railroad tracks before the derailment.
Firefighters picked through twisted wreckage scattered across the tracks and carried wounded passengers from the trains to a triage center set up in a nearby parking lot.
At this time, we believe we have nine fatalities, Fire Chief William Battmare said. More than 100 people were transported to hospitals, he said.
One commuter train was headed from Los Angeles Union Station to downtown Burbank, and the other was bound to Union Station from Moorpark, Metrolink officials said.
I heard a noise. It got louder and louder, said passenger Diane Brady, 56, of Simi Valley. And next thing I knew the train tilted, everyone was screaming and I held onto a pole for dear life. I held on for what seemed like a week and a half, it seemed. It was a complete nightmare.
In a light rain, firefighters climbed ladders into windows of a battered train tipped onto its side.
Deliberately placed on the tracks?? Could this be a new form of terrorism (if terrorist related)?