WASHINGTON — According to the Washington Post, about 60 Metro riders had to be evacuated on a makeshift footbridge from their train last night after the last car derailed between Reagan National Airport and Crystal City, passengers and officials said.
Metro officials said they had no idea what caused the Blue Line train to jump the tracks as it entered a tunnel leading to the Crystal City stop at 8:19 p.m., and the derailment remains under investigation.
No one was injured, but passengers in the last car said they felt a violent lurch and tried desperately to get the crew to stop the train.
“I felt like we hit a pothole, and then I felt the car shake violently and swing side to side,” said Parker Taylor, 24, a law student from the District who was in the rear car. “My greatest fear — and we were swinging so violently — was that we would topple over.”
Taylor said he called 911 on his cell phone and tried unsuccessfully to find an emergency brake. Another passenger contacted the crew by using the emergency intercom. Steven Taubenkibel, a Metro spokesman, said the rear wheels on the last car of the six-car train left the track. Power was shut off, and passengers were evacuated to buses that took them back to the airport.
“This is very rare for us to have a situation like this,” Taubenkibel said. “The first thing to us right now is the safety of the customers.”
The train derailed moments after leaving the airport, according to passengers, who were stuck on the train for about 45 minutes.
Rescue workers, including Transit Police and Arlington firefighters, cobbled together a footbridge using metal ladders, boards designed to support patients’ backs in transit, and cinder blocks. Passengers were led from the train to a grassy knoll and then to the buses. Later, they were transported from the airport to the Crystal City station.
Several days ago, thousands of Metro riders who use the Blue and Yellow lines were delayed during the morning rush when maintenance equipment derailed in the same general area. Buckling on a portion of track was responsible for a derailment on the Orange Line in July 1998, officials said.
Last night’s derailment caused some damage to the track, Taubenkibel said, and the train was still waiting to be removed shortly before midnight. Trains in that stretch were running on a single track, and Metro officials said they did not know whether service would be disrupted today.
Among the dozen or so people in the rear car was Reynold N. Hoover, who stayed in his seat as others ran about. Hoover, 41, knows something about emergencies. He’s the chief of staff at the Federal Emergency Management Agency. “I figured eventually the train would stop, and it’s best to stay in my seat,” he said, adding later: “That’s why I stayed in my seat. I was prepared.”