Amtrak derailment Archives - Northwest Public Broadcasting

‘I Knew I Needed To Go Out,’ Says Blood Donor Marking 3rd Anniversary Of Deadly I-5 Amtrak Crash

By Tom Banse December 18, 2020

Donor Kaitlan Vasquez giving blood in Olympia on the third anniversary of the Amtrak 501 train wreck in December 2017. CREDIT: Tom Banse/N3

Three years ago on December 18, a speeding Amtrak Cascades train bound for Portland derailed near DuPont, Washington, and tumbled onto Interstate 5. The crash killed three passengers and injured scores of others. An Olympia woman marked the anniversary Friday by going back to her local blood donation center to achieve a related, but happier milestone.Read More

There’s Another Multimillion Dollar Jury Settlement Against Amtrak Following 2017 I-5 Derailment

By Tom Banse November 13, 2019

Cars from an Amtrak train lie spilled onto Interstate 5 below alongside smashed vehicles as some train cars remain on the tracks in DuPont, Washington. CREDIT: ELAINE THOMPSON/AP

An eight-member federal court jury on Wednesday ordered Amtrak to pay Madeleine Garza of Maple Valley, Washington, $4.5 million for pain, suffering and possible future disabilities. Garza received spinal injuries and broke her pelvis during the derailment of the speeding Amtrak Cascades train, which was traveling from Seattle to Portland.Read More

Amtrak Concedes Negligence In Deadly 2017 Derailment Over I-5 Near Tacoma

By Tom Banse September 3, 2019

Amtrak train derailment onto Interstate 5 - Picture 2

The crash on Dec. 18, 2017, killed three passengers and injured 65 others, including people on board the speeding train and motorists on adjacent Interstate 5. Amtrak asserted the only question the jury would need to wrestle with is "what is fair and reasonable compensation."Read More

‘Titanic-Like Complacency’: NTSB Official Criticizes Oversight Before 2017 Washington Amtrak Crash

By NWPB News June 25, 2019

The National Transportation Safety Board published its final report Monday on a deadly Amtrak derailment in Washington in 2017, with the agency’s vice chairman blasting what he described as a “Titanic-like complacency” among those charged with ensuring train operations were safe.Read More

Deadly 2017 Amtrak Wreck Could Have Been Prevented, Feds Conclude

By Tom Banse May 21, 2019

The Amtrak Cascades train derailed at 78 mph at a highway overpass near DuPont, Washington on December 18, 2017. CREDIT: MEGAN FARMER / KUOW

Crew training deficiencies played a crucial role in the deadly 2017 Amtrak train derailment near DuPont, Washington, according to a final report from federal investigators accepted Tuesday by the National Transportation Safety Board.Read More

Another Amtrak Cascades Train Derailed Almost Exactly One Year After I-5 Wreck, No Injuries

By Tom Banse December 18, 2018

No passengers were injured Monday when an Amtrak Cascades train derailed while slowly backing into the station in Vancouver, Canada. CREDIT: FILE PHOTO BY ERICVNTR / WIKIMEDIA COMMONS TINYURL.COM/Y9ULXW5W

An Amtrak Cascades train arriving in Vancouver, B.C., from Seattle derailed at low speed Monday. Nobody was hurt, but the timing was unfortunate: The derailment occurred almost exactly one year after last December's deadly derailment south of Tacoma, which killed three people and injured dozens more. Read More

Survivors Still Healing, Seeking Accountability One Year After Deadly Amtrak Derailment Over I-5

By Tom Banse December 14, 2018

It's been almost one year since an Amtrak Cascades train derailed near DuPont, Washington. The crash killed three passengers and injured more than 60, including drivers on adjacent Interstate 5. One year later, some of the seriously injured are still healing. The courts are just beginning to deal with the lawsuits stemming from the crash. Read More

Hearing On Washington Amtrak Derailment Zeroes In On Problematic Curves

By Ericka Cruz Guevarra July 13, 2018

The engineer operating the doomed Amtrak 501 train traveling from Seattle to Portland on Dec. 18 last year told investigators the train had a different control panel and displays than what he was used to.Read More

Investigators Blame Sleep Apnea For Train Crashes, Push For Mandatory Screening

By NPR News February 7, 2018

The National Transportation Safety Board said two recent commuter rail accidents that killed one person and injured more than 200 others were caused by engineers falling asleep at the controls.Read More