2 trains on same track will be focus of probe

0 Comments | Deseret News (Salt Lake City), Dec 2, 2007

CHICAGO (AP) -- Federal transportation officials said Saturday their main priority as they investigate a train collision on Chicago's South Side is to figure out why both trains were on the same track at the same time.

People were catapulted from their seats when the double-decker Amtrak train traveling to Chicago from Grand Rapids, Mich., crashed into a freight train Friday. But most of the 187 passengers aboard the "Pere Marquette" walked away without major injuries.

The accident sent 71 people to area hospitals, most of them in stable or good condition, according to the Chicago Fire Department. Three people -- one Amtrak crew member and two passengers -- were hospitalized overnight, said National Transportation Safety Board Vice Chairman Robert Sumwalt. All three had been released by Saturday evening, according to Amtrak spokesman Marc Magliari.

"We're very fortunate that injuries were limited," Sumwalt said Saturday.

A team of nine NTSB investigators planned to begin interviewing crew members, passengers, dispatchers and supervisors Saturday but said the investigation could take months to complete.