Commuter Train Derails Near Quantico

Injuries Minor, But Traffic on Busy Line Disrupted for Hours

A Virginia Railway Express engine and cars sit next to the line, shown buckled at right, where they derailed after crossing Quantico Creek early yesterday. (By Larry Morris -- The Washington Post)

Thousands of riders were delayed by hours and five people sustained minor injuries yesterday when a Virginia commuter train derailed just north of Quantico in Prince William County.

The engine and three cars of Virginia Railway Express train No. 304, which was carrying 520 passengers between Fredericksburg and Union Station, jumped the tracks at 6:43 a.m. just north of a switch point near Quantico Creek.

The derailed cars came to a stop just feet from the track and were tilted but did not overturn, preventing serious injuries.

"Some days you thank your lucky stars, and this is one of those days," said Wendy Lemieux, a VRE spokeswoman. "We're pleased and fortunate there were no serious injuries."

Three passengers and a conductor were taken to Potomac Hospital with minor injuries such as bruises and small cuts, according to Capt. Tim Taylor, a spokesman for the Prince William Fire and Rescue Department. A fifth person was treated at the scene, he said.

The other passengers stayed on board for more than two hours, until about 9 a.m., when another train arrived and took them back to the stations where they began their journeys, Taylor said.

The derailment halted passenger and freight service in both directions south of Washington on a heavily traveled line that is owned by CSX and carries 32 VRE and Amtrak trains a day. VRE plans full service on the Fredericksburg line this morning but said that trains would be slow and that delays could last up to 40 minutes.

Amtrak was forced to cancel or stop 14 trains. Limited Amtrak service returned about 7:30 p.m. with a train from New York to Miami.

Between 1,500 and 2,000 afternoon VRE riders on the Fredericksburg line were bused to their home stations after taking a train from the District to the Metro stop in Springfield, Lemieux said.

Sarah Clark was one of them. "It's annoying, but people who commute just have to deal with it," Clark said. "It's been smooth for what VRE had to do."

CSX spokesman Bob Sullivan said company officials "plan to have service restored sometime overnight." VRE said service on the Manassas line was not affected.

Only one track crosses the lengthy Quantico Creek bridge, and the train was trying to move onto the northbound track just beyond it when the derailment occurred, said Debbie Hersman of the National Transportation Safety Board, which is investigating the incident.