Articles Posted in Train Accident

According to preliminary reports at least 11 people have been injured in a collision between two Chicago Transit Authority (CTA) trains stopped near the Harlem Blueline station.

At approximately 8:00 a.m. this morning a CTA train crashed into another train that was stopped at the Harlem station on the line towards Forrest Park. Ambulances have been called to the scene and passengers are being re-routed.

In 2009, the Illinois Legislature with the Governor’s approval, repealed a law requiring people with negligence claims against the CTA that arose from injuries they sustained in public transportation accidents to provide the CTA with written notice of their claim within 6 months of the incident occurring. Although the 6-month notice requirement has been repealed, making it easier to bring a claim against the CTA for serious transit injuries, a one-year statute of limitations still remains. This means that a person who was injured due to CTA negligence has one year to file a claim, otherwise their cause of action will be forever barred and there will be no remedy for recovery.

A person fell from the platform at the CTA Division station on to the tracks this morning and was hit by a train, causing the power to be shut off for approximately 14 minutes. It was reported that the person who fell was taken to an area hospital for observation. The person did not make contact with the electric third rail.

The Klest Law Firm is experienced in handling train accident cases and is pursuing claims on behalf of the victims of the Metra derailment of May 13, 2011. To speak with an attorney from the Klest Injury Law Firm, please call 866-264-7639.

© Joseph G. Klest, 2011.

Eight months ago, Elk Grove Village turned off its red-light cameras on Busse Road and Devon Avenue. Since then, traffic accidents at that intersection increased nearly three times. From January to August of this year there were 29 crashes, compared to last hear where there were only 10. This has prompted the Village Board to vote Tuesday night to have the cameras reactivated.

To speak to an experienced car accident lawyer from the Klest Injury Law Firm, call 866-264-7639 for a free consultation.

© Joseph G. Klest, 2011.

A collision between a California bound Amtrak train and a truck resulted in five deaths earlier this morning. The Amtrak train had reportedly left Chicago on Wednesday and was in Nevada about 300 miles from its destination when the accident occurred. The Amtrak train, California Zephyr, operates daily trips between Chicago and Emeryville, Ca. According to reports, the fatal train accident occurred when a truck hit the train at a public railroad crossing near the town of Lovelock, NV, around 11:20 a.m. The Amtrak train was carrying 204 passengers and 14 crew members at the time of the crash.

Witnesses describe a scene of confusion and panic following the heavy collision as smoke filled the train cars. Nearly all of the train passengers and crew had self-evacuated by the time emergency crews arrived. The end result of the train accident left 5 dead and another twenty injured. Many of the train accident survivors were taken to a local school for recovery. Some of the more seriously injured passengers had to be medivacked out from the scene of the train crash. The National Transportation Safety Board has started an investigation into the circumstances surrounding the crash. Individuals with questions about friends and family members that may have been aboard the train are encouraged to contact Metra at 1-800-523-9101.

It is important that vital evidence is preserved when a catastrophic train accident occurs. The Klest Law Firm is experienced in handling train accident cases and is currently pursuing claims on behalf of the victims of the Metra derailment of May 13, 2011.

A Metra train derailed in suburban Des Plaines, IL, this morning when the train reportedly struck a dump truck at Northwest Highway and Mt. Prospect Roads. The train accident occurred around 8:40 this morning. The train, number 636, was reportedly heading inbound from Harvard when it struck the truck at the crossing around 8:40 a.m. Witnesses to the train crash described a horrific scene of confusion as the train cars filled with smoke and tilted following a large explosion. Reports indicate that some passengers were jumping out of train windows at both the first and second levels. Witnesses heard no horn or brakes prior to the Chicago train accident.

The truck was reportedly carrying a load of concrete and was operating northwest on Northwest Highway. Police have indicated that the truck may have turned left onto Mt. Prospect Rd. and through the train crossing. The Metra train eventually came to rest about 200 yards east of Mount Prospect Rd. As many as 800 passengers were aboard the train when the accident occurred and reports have indicated that at least 17 suffered train accident injuries. Information regarding the Chicago train derailment still remains somewhat limited.

Statistics show that a railroad accident occurs approximately every two hours in the United States. The Federal Railroad Administration’s Office of Safety Analysis has revealed that there were 13,067 railroad related accidents in 2007 resulting in 851 deaths and 8,801 non-fatal injuries.

A pedestrian was killed on January 13th in Berwyn, IL, when he was struck by a train at the East Avenue crossing of the Burlington North Santa Fe line. The tragic Chicago train accident occurred at about 6:25 p.m. According to Berwyn Police, the male pedestrian was struck by an inbound train that was reportedly scheduled to arrive in the city at 6:42 p.m. The Chicago train accident delayed Metra service on the North Santa Fe line for about an hour. A train that was initially scheduled to depart Union Station for Downers Grove at 7 p.m. was cancelled as a result of the fatal Chicago train crash.

Emergency response personnel were able to determine that the man had died and was to be taken from the scene of the fatal accident to the Cook County Medical Examiner’s Office. The Cook County medical examiner was not able to provide further information about the train accident victim as of 8 p.m. Thursday evening. The fatal Chicago train crash is still being investigated by local authorities.

Chicago area train crossings can be very dangerous for pedestrians and motorists alike.

A Chicago resident was struck and killed by a Metra train Wednesday morning in Chicago’s Pullman neighborhood. The deceased resided on the 400 block of East 113th St. According to a spokesman for the Chicago Fire Department, the man was hit near 11100 S. Cottage Grove Ave. around 7:14 a.m. Eyewitness reports publicized via a Metra spokesperson indicate that the man may have been trying to retrieve items from the track when the tragic Chicago train accident occurred. The train engineer applied the brakes but was reportedly unable to stop the train in time to avoid a fatal collision.

The train, Electric Line train No. 106, was halted at the scent of the accident for about one hour following the deadly train crash. Train passengers were transferred to another train shortly thereafter at which point the trip downtown was resumed. Metra service was reportedly delayed about an hour following the crash. The Chicago train fatality is still being investigated by local authorities and Metra.

If you have been the victim of a Chicago train accident you should contact a Chicago personal injury attorney as soon as possible to investigate the accident and preserve evidence. The Klest Law Firm has been advocating on behalf of injured individuals in catastrophic matters for over twenty eight years.

Officials from the Canadian National Railway (CNR) have admitted that track signals at the Stuenkel Rd. intersection were not functioning properly last Friday night when a young dance instructor was hit by a train. The fatal Chicago area train accident occurred on the Amtrak tracks in University Park, IL, about a half mile from Governors State University. Initial reports of the tragedy had indicated that railroad crews working near the intersection had inadvertently deactivated the gates, bells and warning lights prior to the fatal Chicago train accident. An investigator who wished to remain nameless disclosed, “This was human error.” These findings were corroborated by a video camera that was on board the four car Amtrak train. That video shows that there were no flashing lights, barrier gates, and/or bells activated at the Stuenkel Road crossing.

The Federal Railroad Administration is investigating the accident along with Canadian National, the Illinois Department of Transportation, the Illinois Commerce Commission and the National Transportation Safety Board. Officials from Canadian National have declined to comment on the tragic train accident, however a statement was issued admitting that the crossing protection systems in place at the intersection did not function properly.

Train accidents require exhaustive investigation and often involve many parties. If you have been injured in an Illinois train accident, you should contact an Illinois personal injury attorney to investigate the circumstances surrounding the accident. The Klest Law Firm has over thirty years of experience helping victims of Illinois accidents.

A woman died yesterday when she was struck by an Amtrak train around 5 p.m. According to Amtrak spokesman Marc Magliari, a Seattle and Portland bound train hit the woman as she was using the pedestrian crossing at the Lake Forest, IL, station. The train accident claimed the life of 43 year-old Teresa Spradlin of Grayslake, IL. The Lake County Coroner officially pronounced Spradlin dead around 6 p.m. yesterday.

Two unidentified Grayslake men were also injured in the train accident. Those men were taken to Advocate Condell Medical Center in Libertyville with reportedly minor injuries. Amtrak officials and the Lake Forest Police report that the train was stopped for about four hours while the accident was being investigated. It has been speculated that the victim was attempting to cross in front of the non-stop Amtrak train when the accident occurred. The train accident is still under investigation.

According to Illinois Operation Lifesaver, a non-profit public education program established to end collisions and deaths at railroad crossings, Illinois ranks fourth among the top 15 states for rail crossing collisions. The non-profit reports that Illinois suffered 151 highway-rail grade crossing collisions in 2007. About half of these collisions occurred while warning signals were flashing or train gates were down.

A Rockford, IL, woman was killed last Friday when a freight train derailed setting off a dangerous explosion. According to reports, the tragic train accident occurred at a rural Cherry Valley, IL, train intersection around 9 p.m. on Friday night. The train was heading from Freeport to Chicago when the derailment occurred. According to Canadian National Railway Company officials, the train comprised 18 cars loaded with ethanol. The train derailed as it was approaching the Cherry Valley intersection. Zoila Tellez of Rockford, IL, was killed trying to flee the intersection once the train derailed according to the Winnebago County Coroner. Three passengers were able to survive the flaming accident. A 17 year old girl injured in the accident was listed in critical but stable condition at the burn unit of Chicago’s Stroger Hospital.

Investigators have determined that there was high water along the tracks where the freight train derailed. The role that the rainwater played in the crash remains under investigation according to Robert Sumwaldt of the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB). The NTSB says that it could take up to a year to indentify the cause of the train accident. The agency is presently looking for witnesses that might have observed the train accident for interviews.

Illinois train accidents are very dangerous and complex. If you have any questions regarding a train accident or you would like to speak to an experienced attorney contact the Klest Injury Law Firm today.