Nearly two dozen folks had been taken to the hospital after a CTA Yellow Line prepare struck a chunk of company tools on the tracks Thursday morning close to the border of Evanston and Chicago, in accordance with the Chicago Fire Department.
Thirty-eight folks had been seen by paramedics, together with seven CTA workers, Chicago Fire Department spokesman Larry Langford mentioned. Of these, 23 had been taken to the hospital in various situations, together with 4 kids, he mentioned.
Three folks had been in serious-to-critical situation, however their accidents weren’t believed to be life threatening, Langford mentioned. One of the injured CTA workers was the operator of the prepare, who was significantly injured, and two others had been on the snow plow, mentioned Eric Dixon, president of the union that represents CTA’s prepare workers.
Around 10:35 a.m., a two-car Yellow Line prepare that was carrying passengers rounded a curve and hit a snow plow shifting in the identical course on the identical monitor, about 300 yards from the Howard station, hearth division officers mentioned. The Yellow Line prepare, additionally known as a Skokie Swift, was shifting at a traditional pace, however the snow plow was shifting slower, he mentioned.
Workers and pedestrians close to the station mentioned they heard the loud crash when the prepare and snow plow collided.
Ketan Patel, who works close by, heard a “very big boom” at about 10:30 a.m. He mentioned he instantly left the again workplace within the Evanston Mart, initially considering one of many gasoline pumps exterior had exploded.
”I obtained scared, began operating out,” Patel, the shop’s supervisor, mentioned.
About 5 minutes later he noticed what he considered practically 50 ambulance, police and hearth autos speeding to crash website, situated just some minutes from the shop.
CTA didn’t instantly reply to a request for remark about how the prepare struck the snow plow.
The Howard station serves the Red, Yellow and Purple traces. More than three hours after the crash, prepare service on the Yellow line remained suspended, CTA mentioned. The Red and Purple line had simply resumed regular service.
The crash drew responses from Chicago and Illinois elected officers, and the National Transportation Safety Board mentioned Thursday afternoon it was sending a group to research the collision.
“My administration is closely monitoring the train derailment on the North Side and will direct any available resources needed,” Gov. J.B. Pritzker posted on X, beforehand often called Twitter. “Thank you to the CFD firefighters and first responders on the scene.”
Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson mentioned in a press release, “Our thoughts are with all affected and we are grateful for our brave first responders on the scene. We are working closely with emergency services as we continue to monitor this incident.”
Illinois Rep. Jan Schakowsky, who represents the realm, additionally issued a press release.
“This is horrible news. My team and I are closely monitoring the situation unfolding following the CTA Yellow Line train crash near the Howard Station,” she mentioned on X. “Thank you to all the first responders. I’m sending love and well wishes to all those who were injured.”
The Yellow Line runs between the Howard station, on the border of Chicago and Evanston, and Skokie. Two of its three stations are in Skokie, and lots of the prepare’s riders hail from the suburb, taking the prepare south to entry the Red Line and Chicago.
“Our hearts go out to everyone involved,” mentioned Skokie Mayor George Van Dusen. “I hope everyone involved is going to recover and be OK,” he added.
The crash is the newest problem for CTA, which has confronted complaints about unreliable service, situations on trains and buses and considerations about private security lately.
In 2014, when a Blue Line prepare pulling into the station at O’Hare International Airport crashed by a barrier on the finish of the tracks and landed on prime of an escalator after the rookie operator dozed off. The crash injured greater than 30 folks and precipitated roughly $11 million in damages, and result in operational modifications on the CTA, together with reducing the pace restrict for trains approaching the O’Hare platform.
The following 12 months, an embankment alongside the Yellow Line collapsed throughout a neighboring building mission, and Skokie Swift service was halted for five 1/2 months.
Also Thursday morning, a CTA bus was additionally concerned in an unrelated crash. The bus was rear-ended by a van close to the intersection of Roosevelt and Columbus downtown, Langford mentioned. The driver of the van was taken to the hospital in essential situation. Three different folks had been additionally taken to the hospital, and Langford mentioned preliminary info indicated they had been seemingly additionally within the van.
This story is creating. Visit the Chicago Tribune for updates.
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