May 8, 2009 11:18 pm US/Eastern
Driver In MBTA Train Wreck Was Texting
Dozens Hurt When Train Crashes Into Another Train
BOSTON (WBZ) ―
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This photo shows damage from inside the train where the driver was sitting.
Jeff Miller/WBZ
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This photo shows damage from inside the train where the driver was sitting.
Jeff Miller/WBZ
The National Transportation Security Board will open an investigation into Friday night's crash of two Green Line trolleys that injured 49 people. An inbound train derailed between Park Street and Government Center as it hit another train which was stopped at a signal.
The operator of the train that caused the crash admitted to transit police that he was text messaging when the wreck occurred, MBTA General Manager Dan Grabauskas said.
The 24-year-old driver of the train that crashed is a two-year employee with the MBTA. He suffered the most serious injuries but is in stable condition. Police interviewed the man from an area hospital.
"I can tell you it's difficult to contain my outrage at hearing this," Grabauskas said.
Grabauskas said the driver could face termination.
DOZENS INJURED
49 people were injured. Nearly two dozen people were put onto stretchers outside Government Center. Authorities said none of the injuries were life threatening. A spokesperson at Massachusetts General Hospital tells WBZ all those treated at the hospital have been released. Most of the injuries appeared to be minor cuts and bruises.
"It was a very chaotic scene. We had several people trapped, so there were some extrications," said fire spokesman Richard Dibenedetto.
Boston EMS Deputy Superintendent John Gill said crews treated and/or transported 46 people.
Grabauskas said another 70 walked out on their own. Close to 200 people were on the two trains when they crashed.
Gill said the biggest challenge in situations like these is containing those who were injured because many walk off and go to the hospital on their own. He said Friday night's rescue went smoothly.
"We were able to contain them pretty well here, assess them and treat them," he said.
Dozens of emergency vehicles responded to the scene.
A 28-year-old woman who was injured in the wreck said the train was fairly crowded at the time. She said there was no warning. The woman was on her way to the Red Sox game.
DRIVER COULD BE FIRED
The
MBTA has warned drivers against text messaging or any cell phone use while they are operating a train. Grabauskas said the MBTA takes the danger of text messaging very seriously, and a full investigation will be launched into Friday's crash.
"There is absolutely no excuse for a bus driver or train operator with the MBTA to be operating a cell phone or texting of any kind when they have lives of individuals behind them," Grabauskas said. "We've made that clear time and time again, and I'm very angry about it."
"If the facts in this case are as presented, he will lose his job," he added.
PAST MBTA CRASHES
The last time the MBTA had a serious crash was nearly a year ago. On May 28 in Newton, a
Green Line operator was killed when the train she was driving rear-ended a second train.
Seven other people were seriously hurt.
Just two months earlier in Canton a runaway CSX rail car slammed into a commuter train.
About 150 people on board were hurt.
GREEN LINE DIVERTED
The Green Line was closed from Park Street to Government Center Friday night and into Saturday morning to allow the NTSB investigation to take place. Service was being diverted to the Orange Line between Park Street and North Station.
From either North Station or Haymarket Station, commuters can take the Orange Line to Downtown then use the Winter Street Concourse to reconnect to the Green line.
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Images From The Scene
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