(The National Transportation Safety Board issued the following on February 17, 2010.)
WASHINGTON, D.C. — The National Transportation Safety Board today released additional information about the Board’s scheduled public hearing as part of its ongoing investigation into the cause of the collision of two Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority (WMATA) Metrorail Red Line trains. The collision occurred on June 22, 2009, between the Fort Totten and Takoma stations in Washington, D.C. As a result of this accident, there were nine fatalities and numerous injuries.
The three-day hearing will convene at 9:00 a.m. on Tuesday, February 23, 2010, and is expected to conclude before the close of business, Thursday, February 25. It will be held at the NTSB’s Board Room and Conference Center, 429 L’Enfant Plaza, S.W., Washington, D.C. The room is lighted for television and a mult box is provided for sound.
The NTSB will also place a number of additional documents into the public docket at the start of the hearing. The public may view and download the docket contents on the NTSB website under “Accident Dockets” at http://www.ntsb.gov/dockets/foia_fri-dockets.htm.
The information being released is factual in nature and does not provide analysis or the probable cause of the accident. The docket will include investigative group reports, interview transcripts, and other documents from the investigation. In addition, docket items that will be used as exhibits during the public hearing will be available on the website under “Public Hearings”.
Information from the hearing, which is part of the NTSB’s efforts to develop all appropriate facts for the investigation, will cover a wide range of safety issues and will be used by the NTSB to prepare the final report on the accident, including safety recommendations aimed at preventing similar accidents in the future.
A detailed agenda is posted on the Board’s website at http://ntsb.gov/events/2010/Washington-DC/agenda.htm.
The link for the hearing webcast will be found on the NTSB public hearing schedule Web page at http://www.ntsb.gov/events/hearing_sched.htm when it becomes available. Technical support details are available under “Board Meetings”. To report any problems, please call 703- 993-3100 and ask for Webcast Technical Support.
Directions to the NTSB Board Room: Front door located on Lower 10th Street, directly below L’Enfant Plaza. From Metro, exit L’Enfant Plaza station at 9th and D Streets escalator, walk through shopping mall, at the CVS store (on the left), and take escalator (on the right) down one level. The Board room will be to your left.