Surveillance Video Depicts Violent Derailment Of Airport's MIA Mover
MIAMI (CBS4) –New surveillance tape obtained by CBS4 from Miami International Airport shows some dramatic and terrifying moments as the MIA mover derailed last Sunday.
The tape what happens inside and outside the elevated people mover system that transports people between the car rental center and the terminal.
One camera shows what appears to be passengers enjoying a quiet ride on the MIA mover until suddenly, there is a jolt. Passengers are thrown forward and some fall down.
Amid the confusion, one man is seen grabbing an infant from a stroller. That may have saved the child from serious injury as he cradles the child in his arms.
Twelve passengers are on board the MIA mover. Two suffer minor injuries.
And angle in the surveillance tape obtained by CBS4 shows what happens on the outside as the MIA mover is approaching the terminal.
Suddenly a guide wheel comes off and you see the car lurching to the left. It has derailed and suddenly stopped. You see the MIA mover sitting on the track, leaning to the left.
Meanwhile, there was good news Tuesday morning for the passengers passing through the airport and needing to rent a car or drop off a rental before heading to the terminal.
The MIA Mover started moving again just before 7 a.m.
The shuttle train was shut down on Sunday after the derailment.
"I have been told, that there was a guide wheel that came off and that's the reason that the train tilted to one side," said MIA Spokesman Marc Henderson.
After doing a couple of test runs Monday night with different trams, the shuttle train was put back in service Tuesday morning. The car that derailed is still out of service.
With the train out of service for much of Sunday and all of Monday, the airport used 12 buses and three vans were used to shuttle passengers between the airport and the car rental center. This created delays of 30 to 45 minutes.
"Frustrating, it's ridiculous," said Paula Tabora upon learning she'd have to wait in a long line for a bus to take her to the rental car lot.
Tabora said she'd just flown in from Honduras and had a 3 hour drive ahead of her.
"What am I going to do now?" she questioned, "I can't wait too long because I'm diabetic."
Some passengers decided not to wait and jumped in cabs at the rental center so they wouldn't miss their flight.
"It was not working, so we didn't want to wait that long," said Arturo Garcia of Germany.
Others didn't seem to mind.
"It's been very smooth, everything has just gone seamlessly," said Laura Eve from Louisville.
The MIA Mover, which cost about $270 million, has been open since September.
