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Amtrak Train Crashes In Philadelphia, Wreckage 'Pretty Bad'

PHILADELPHIA (AP) - An Amtrak train headed to New York City crashed and derailed in Philadelphia on Tuesday night, and several people appeared to be injured.

Train 188, a Northeast Regional, had left Washington, D.C., earlier Tuesday. The front of the train was going into a turn when it shook.

An Associated Press employee, Paul Cheung, was on the train and said it appeared it went off the tracks. He said he was fortunate to be at the back of the train and the front of it "looks pretty bad."
Police swarming around the crash site, in Port Richmond, a working-class area, told people to get back, away from the train.

Former Congressman Patrick Murphy was on the train and said he helped people. He tweeted photos of firefighters helping people in the wreckage.

"Pray for those injured," he said.

The cause of the crash was unknown. Amtrak didn't immediately return a phone call seeking comment. The National Transportation Safety Board said Tuesday night it was gathering information about the crash, which it says was a derailment.

Another Amtrak train crashed on Sunday. That train, bound for New Orleans, struck a flatbed truck at a railway crossing in Amite, killing the truck's driver and injuring two people on the train.

 

© Copyright 2015 The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

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