Breaking News: Chicago - Rail Transit system

[American Patriot]

Fox news reporting live a railway system underground, the Blue line, shut down. Smoke coming out of the tunnels. People evacuating, and apparently train is derailed.

This occuring same day as Mubuai Railway attacks.

Rick

[American Patriot]

Witness said it likely derailed, she was on the train

[Sean Osborne]

http://abclocal.go.com/wls/story?sec...cal&id=4357023

CTA derailment, fire prompts rush-hour evacuation


More than 150 taken to hospitals



July 11, 2006 (Last Updated: 9:22 PM) - More than 150 people were transported to Chicago hospitals after a CTA train derailed in a subway tunnel during Tuesday's evening rush hour. Service on CTA's Blue Line has been shut down between downtown and the city's Wicker Park neighborhood.




Most of the victims suffered from smoke inhalation and were transported to area hosptials. Three people are in critical condition and four are in serious condition. Another 33 people received medical attention at the scene.
Patients were transported to the following hospitals: St. Anthony, Mercy, Mount Sinai, St. Joseph, Swedish, Illinois Masonic, Grant/Lincoln Park, Northwestern, St. Mary, Michael Reese, Stroger and Rush. Four of the 14 people reportedly taken to Mercy have been released.
Dozens of commuters were evacuated and a section of the city's transit system is shut down after a train derailment and fire in a subway tunnel in the Loop. Passengers reported that smoke rapidly poured into train cars after the derailment. Officials said there was no indication the incident was terrorism related.

The last car of a Blue Line train leaving the Clark-Lake station derailed shortly after 5 p.m. When the operator realized there was a problem, he stopped the train and called for power to the train to be cut, said Chicago Transit Authority president Frank Kruesi.
All commuters, some covered in soot, appeared to have been evacuated from the subway through an emergency exit near the intersection of Clinton and Fulton by about 6 p.m. Some passengers appeared out of breath and received oxygen.
Service on the busy route has been shut down between downtown and the city's Wicker Park neighborhood while crews remove the train and repair the tracks. A bus service will be provided between the Clark/Lake station and Damen station. For updates on CTA service call 888-YOUR-CTA.
Joel Johnson, 24, of Chicago said he was on the train three cars from the back when "it felt like it jumped the line, and a fire started in the car behind me."
"I saw the orange flames but I didn't hear it," he said. "People started running to the front (of the train), the whole place was filled with smoke, I could barely breath."
Bomb and arson detectives were on the scene, said Chicago Police Superintendent Philip Cline, but he said "there is no (indication of) foul play at this time."
Officials said it was too early Tuesday evening to say what had caused the derailment. Kruesi said the National Transportation Safety Board had been contacted and was expected to investigate.
The Red Cross has set up a hotline for those looking for friends and family. You can call (312) 729-6100.
Blue Line evacuees can retrieve belongings at police station
CTA Blue Line riders who evacuated their train following a derailment Tuesday afternoon will be able to retrieve the belongings they may have left behind.
Personal belongings that were left behind on the Blue Line train can be picked up at the Central District police station, 1718 S. State St., "anytime after 6 a.m. Wednesday," said police News Affairs Officer Kristina Schuler. If anyone who was on the train would like to call the Central District before they head down there, the phone number to call is (312) 745-4290, she added.
Passenger: 'No announcement from conductor'

Passenger Christopher Smith said he was thinking about walking home Tuesday after work but got on the train instead.
"I was standing on the train, wasn't sitting down, and heard a loud noise, could hear this loud reverberation, not an explosion but more like a crash. And from what I thought in my head, it sounded like cars were derailing in the back, and apparently that's what happened," Smith said.
"I was in like the fourth car in the front, so our car shook just a little, not much, but the noise was very loud, and that's what I heard the most. And you could hear one after another and another, and it sounded like the cars were just one by one falling off the track."
"Within minutes, the train, the cars were filled up with smoke. You can see on my face, covered in soot, but other people were even worse. I can imagine there were more in the back of the car."
Smith said the evacuation was not particularly ordered or well organized.
"There was no announcement from the conductor whatsoever, and there was no flashing lights in the tunnel. People didn't know which way to go at first, whether to go forward or backward, didn't know what happened. Some people were screaming, some people were yelling. Some people were telling everyone to be calm. Some women were saying they were gonna pass out, that they were feeling faint."
It wasn't easy for him to breathe, said Smith. He said those onboard with breathing trouble, children and the elderly may have had a difficult time. Smith said it took him about 20 minutes to get from the train to an escape hatch.
"We got off the train and walked quite a few blocks, I'd estimate. Then there was a sign that said 500 feet ahead, so we had to keep walking. We must have walked at least 600 feet-plus in the tunnel before we got to the exit.
"The smoke didn't clear up until we got towards the exit. It was dark. There wasn't much light. It was very smoky. "I was worried for other people. It was a very narrow walkway on which to walk on. If you didn't hold on to the railing -- I mean, I'm surprised people didn't fall back onto the tracks, because you really couldn't see. Unless you walked in a perfect straight line you were gonna dip over, and there's parts where the railing stopped. It was difficult, it was."