An Amtrak train that derailed in Missouri on Monday appeared to be a “mass casualty,” a passenger told The Daily Beast as he was whisked away from the crime scene on a school bus delivered by authorities.
Reached by phone, Ron Goulet of Flagstaff, Arizona, said he was unharmed and that the train traveling from Los Angeles to Chicago derailed after hitting a truck.
“They have all the rescue helicopters and crew from all directions here,” said a shocked Goulet. “We are in Chariton County, Missouri. The train fell on its side. Every seat was sold out full and they put people in the observation car because they were so full. There are enough people on the backboards to be taken [away] by ambulance personnel.”
A Missouri State Highway Patrol official speaking to The Daily Beast Monday afternoon confirmed multiple fatalities but declined to provide a specific number. The Missouri Department of Natural Resources described the derailment as a “major fatality”. KMIZ reported†
In a pronunciationAmtrak said several cars derailed at 1:42 p.m. “after hitting a dump truck at a public crosswalk in Mendon, Missouri.”
“There are about 243 passengers on board with early reports of injuries,” the statement said. “Local authorities are currently helping customers and we have deployed Amtrak resources to help.”
Officials have not yet released any information about possible fatalities.
Goulet said he “didn’t personally see anyone dead”, but that “no doubt there are still people trapped on that train. They are now starting to cut it apart.”
Another passenger, Rob Nightingale, posted a video on facebook as he sat on top of the overturned train and said the truck was hit as it crossed the tracks.
Survivors were taken to a local primary school for triage, Goulet told The Daily Beast. He said there seemed to be dozens of people waiting to be checked by medical personnel.
Derailments are relatively uncommon for Amtrak, which averaged about 24 per year for the past decade, up from 43 in the previous decade, according to federal data reviewed by The Washington Post†
