KOMO-TV via AP
An aerial image of the site of an Amtrak train that derailed in Washington state on Monday.
- An engineer on the derailed Amtrak train noted that the train was going too fast six seconds before the train derailed, according to the National Transportation Safety Board.
- The accident occurred on Monday morning in Washington state, killing three people on the train and injuring dozens more.
- The train was going 78 mph in a 30 mph zone.
- Safety measures that could have potentially prevented the accident were not yet installed on the train.
An engineer on the derailed Amtrak train noted that the train was going too fast six seconds before the train derailed, according to an investigation by the National
Train 501 derailed on Monday morning south of Tacoma in Washington state, killing three people on the train and injuring dozens more. The NTSB found that the train was going 78 mph in a 30 mph zone at the time of the crash. The train was making its first trip on a new section of a route between Seattle and Portland, and while the section had been tested for at least six months prior to the accident, local officials had concerns about the project's safety.
The NTSB began its investigation into the accident on Monday. While the full investigation will take 12-24 months, the agency has made a few discoveries so far.
It found that positive train control (PTC), a technology that can automatically slow a train down if it senses it's going too fast, was not installed on the train. And footage from the front car's camera also showed that no crew members were distracted by their phones or any other electronic devices during the segment reviewed by the NTSB.