(The Baltimore Sun posted the following article on its website on November 17.)
BALTIMORE, Md. — Passenger and freight railroad traffic between Baltimore and Washington was halted last night after three empty hoppers of a northbound 111-car CSX coal train derailed near Bowie on tracks shared with Amtrak and brought down power lines, the railroads reported.
The cause of the derailment was not known, and hours after the derailment, railroad crews were attempting to return the cars to the tracks and restore service.
Tracy Connell of Amtrak said the derailment occurred about 7:30 p.m. between Glenn Dale and Bowie near Routes 564 and 193. The two crew members were uninjured, according to CSX spokesman Gary Sease.
Connell said an electric Amtrak train carrying 420 passengers was stranded at the New Carrollton station and that a diesel engine was dispatched there to get the train to Washington.
“Some of [the passengers] probably were getting off at the New Carrollton station and were not affected by the derailment,” she said.
Connell said four or five other Amtrak trains were in standing mode between Baltimore and Washington until the three cars were returned to the tracks and power was restored.
It was not known whether full service would be restored by this morning.