TOWN OF WAPPINGER – A northbound CSX train full of garbage, known as a “trash train” derailed at the Chelsea crossing in Wappingers Falls during the overnight hours on Thursday. One rail car left the tracks right at the crossing at Bank Street in the Wappinger hamlet of Chelsea. All cars remained upright during the incident. Crews from both Metro-North and CSX responded to the scene to make the necessary repairs and keep the tracks open for the Amtrak and Metro-North trains that operate in the area.
Metro-North said Hudson Line service changes will occur during the week of April 3- 7 while crews continue to repair track and switch damage caused by the freight train derailment.
For morning service from April 3 through April 7, the Newburgh-Beacon ferry will leave three minutes earlier than scheduled.
At approximately 9:00 a.m. on Friday, the carriage and axles on the derailed car were removed and replacement parts were installed.
A member of one crew, speaking anonymously, told Mid-Hudson News that the onboard crew noticed a problem as the train was approaching Chelsea. One of the train workers looked back at the train during a straightaway and observed sparks coming from one of the axles and immediately worked to shut the train down.
Eight cars and the two locomotives had already gone through the crossing, with the ninth car, stopping on the crossing. It was that car that had a part, resembling an automobile brake component, begin rubbing together, with the metal creating the sparks. The member of the repair crew noted that the train crew prevented an enormous wreck by acting as swiftly as they did, adding that there were dozens more cars behind the broken one.
The repair and restoration process involved removing the cars north of the disabled one and pulling them north to allow a workspace. The cars behind the damaged one were also uncoupled and moved further south, isolating the car needing repairs.
The train was “re-railed” at approximately 9:30 a.m. and engineers worked to reconnect the cars to continue hauling the loaded garbage north to Selkirk.
One Metro-North train from Poughkeepsie was forced to originate from Beacon for the trip to Grand Central until appropriate clearance between the tracks could be restored. The remaining southbound commuter trains were experiencing delays of 15-20 minutes per train for the rest of Friday morning.
A request for information from CSX was not immediately answered.
