(Source: National Transportation Safety Board press release, May 4, 2018)
WASHINGTON, D.C. — On April 5, 2018, about 8:12 p.m. eastern daylight time, a passenger who was walking eastward on the Long Island Rail Road (LIRR) Lynbrook Station platform came into contact with the side of train 884, fell, and died as the train was leaving the station.[1] The accident happened in Lynbrook, New York on the LIRR Long Beach Branch. At the time of the accident, the sky was clear, wind was 19 mph from the south, and the temperature was 42°F.
Train 884 entered the Lynbrook Station about 8:11 p.m. and departed about 1 minute later after passengers disembarked and boarded. LIRR operating rules required crewmembers to make sure that all people were clear of the train and doors before closing the doors and beginning movement. According to crewmember interviews, the conductor was in the third car of the train looking out of the window back along the platform and the assistant conductor was on the platform near the seventh car before the door closed and the train departed the station. The assistant conductor signaled to the conductor with a flashlight that all passengers were clear of the train. The conductor acknowledged the signal, closed the doors, and told the locomotive engineer to depart the station.
After the train began moving, the conductor said he saw a person move toward the train, about halfway down the platform, near the waiting room. The conductor said the person made contact with the side of the fifth or sixth car of the train and fell to the ground. The conductor then called the engineer over the intercom to stop the train, as he also signaled for the train to stop. After the train stopped, the conductor and assistant conductor got off the train and discovered the deceased person on the platform about one car-length, or about 85 feet, from the east end of the station.
The Metropolitan Transit Authority (MTA) police department responded to the scene because LIRR is a subsidiary of MTA. The police found that there was no criminal activity contributable to the accident.
The National Transportation Board (NTSB) is conducting a limited investigation of this accident with investigators reviewing data and interviews provided by the Federal Railroad Administration (FRA), the MTA police department, and LIRR.
Parties to the investigation include the FRA, the New York Public Transportation Safety Board, MTA, LIRR, and the International Association of Sheet Metal, Air, Rail and Transportation Workers.
Full story: www.ntsb.gov