Mayor: At Least 10 Killed In Metrolink Crash
LOS ANGELES (CBS) ―
Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa said Friday night that "at least 10" people were killed -- and scores injured, as many as 47 critically -- when a Metrolink commuter train crashed into a freight train in Chatsworth before the evening rush hour.One of the confirmed dead is a Los Angeles Police Department officer, according to LAPD Media Relations. The officer's name was not released.Reporting overhead in Sky 9, Gary Lineberry said it was a "real mess. And it's a bad one...no doubt about that."The freight train looked accordioned. Several cars on the freight train derailed. Several cars of the commuter train overturned.Tim Lynn reporting overhead in Chopper 2 said the crash was "head on." He added, "We saw people crawling out of the train trying to escape flames. The fire department immediately got into rescue mode."Just looking at the aftermath Lynn said, "this crash had to be horrific."A Metrolink spokeswoman confirmed at least seven people were killed as of 7:30 p.m. Lineberry said police sources were confirming casualties are expected to mount.Later in the evening, a somber Mayor addressed reporters and said the rescue effort had turned into a recovery effort and that "at least 15 people" were dead. Also, officials called in cadaver dogs to look for more victims.The crash occured near Topanga Boulevard about 4:40 p.m.The most serious injuries are believed to be in the front car of the Metrolink train.Some people were believed trapped.Rescue teams were on hand to extricate at least three people from the overturned cars, according to the Los Angeles Fire Department.The Los Angeles Police Department called a citywide tactical alert in response to the crash.Metrolink says the train had 350 passengers.Fire crews think that there might be some bodies trapped underneath some of the overturned cars, debris and rubble.They have requested heavy machinery to move the wreckage.Lineberry reporting over the triage area said responders were separating the wounded and injured by color-coded blankets: the most serious injuries were put on red blankets, serious -- but not critical -- injuries were given yellow blankets, and wounded people who did not require immediate attention were put on green blankets.
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Firefighters stand near a locomotive on September 12, 2008 after a Metrolink passenger liner collided with a Union Pacific freight train near Chatsworth, California.
At least 25 people have been killed and many more injured when a Metrolink commuter train collided yesterday afternoon with a Union Pacific freight train in the Chatsworth district of Los Angeles. Around 250 firefighters have responded to the accident scene. 

Estimates are that 350-400 people were on the number 111 commuter train which departed from Los Angeles' Union Station at 3:35pm PDT. The collision occurred on Friday at about 4:25pm PDT on Metrolink's Ventura County Line. The area in which the crash took place is hilly and contains a single track; it is just north of the Chatsworth Metrolink station.

The force of the collision sent the locomotive of the Metrolink train to penetrate deep into the lead bi-level passenger car of the three-car train. The collision then knocked the Union Pacific and Metrolink locomotives on their side along with the lead passenger car. 


According to various sources, upwards of 10-15 passengers, possibly even more than 20, have been killed, including a Los Angeles Police Department (LAPD) officer. The LAPD has not released the name of the officer.  The engineer of the Metrolink train is believed to be another of the fatalities.

The number of injured is believed to be 135, although the precise number is still unclear. According to emergency responders, the injured have been transported to Los Angeles area hospitals, including the University of California, Northridge Hospital Medical Center,  Providence Holy Cross Medical Center and Huntington Hospital.

“This is the worst accident I’ve ever seen. Clearly the injuries are going to mount and so are the fatalities,” Mayor of Los Angeles, Antonio Villaraigosa, said.

It is unclear how the accident occurred. Some of the possibilities include a signal malfunction, a failure by a crew member to notice a signal or a lapse in protocol for moving trains safely in the area. According to Metrolink and the Los Angeles Times, the National Transportation Safety Board has a team on scene and is investigating.

In an apparently unrelated incident less than an hour after the crash in Chatsworth, another Metrolink train collided with a car in Corona, California, killing the female driver of the automobile.