2005 — Jan 26, Train hits parked SUV and Derails into parked train, Glendale, CA — 11

–11  Mikailian. “Officials look back at deadly 2005 train crash.” Glendale News-Press, 1-27-2015.

–11  National Transportation Safety Board. 2005 Annual Report to Congress. 2005, p. 63.

–11  Wikipedia. “List of Rail Accidents (2000-2009).”

 

Narrative Information

 

Mikailian: “It’s been a decade since an SUV left on the tracks at Chevy Chase Drive caused one of Metrolink’s deadliest crashes, one that claimed 11 lives and shook the Glendale community….It was shortly after 6 a.m. on Jan. 26, 2005. Metrolink train 100 was heading southbound when it struck an SUV parked on the tracks near the Glendale and Los Angeles border. The train jackknifed and the resulting crash killed 11 while injuring nearly 200 more.

 

“Juan Manuel Alvarez, who told investigators he planned to commit suicide, changed his mind at the last minute and left his car behind. He is currently serving 11 consecutive life sentences….”

 

NTSB: “Man Drives Jeep onto Train Tracks to Cause a Derailment near Glendale, California.

 

“On January 26, 2005, a Metrolink Commuter train, consisting of one locomotive and four passenger cars, struck an unoccupied Jeep Cherokee near a public grade crossing. After striking the automobile, the train derailed and collided with a standing Union Pacific ballast train, which was tied down on a siding. No crew was on the Union Pacific train, which derailed and rolled onto its side. Because of the collision, the cars of the Metrolink train struck a passing westbound Metrolink train, which consisted of one locomotive and three passenger cars. Both trains, including all locomotives and passenger cars, derailed. There were 11 passenger fatalities.” (p63)

 

Wikipedia: “January 26, 2005 – Glendale train crash, California, United States: In what was originally thought to be a failed suicide attempt by an automobile driver, a southbound Metrolink double-deck commuter train collides with a vehicle that had been driven onto the tracks and derails; the derailed train strikes the northbound Metrolink train on the other track and a parked Union Pacific Railroad freight train on a siding. 11 people are killed, about 100 injured.” (Wikipedia.  “List of Rail Accidents (2000-2009).”)

 

Sources

 

Mikailian, Arin. “Officials look back at deadly 2005 train crash.” Glendale News-Press, 1-27-2015. Accessed 9-8-2015 at: http://www.glendalenewspress.com/news/tn-gnp-officials-look-back-at-deadly-2005-train-crash-20150127,0,726212.story

 

National Transportation Safety Board. NTSB 2005 Annual Report to Congress (NTSB/SPC-06/01). Washington, DC: NTSB, 2005, 104 pages. Accessed 9-8-2015 at: http://www.ntsb.gov/about/Documents/SPC0601.pdf

 

Wikipedia.  “List of Rail Accidents (2000-2009).” 8-14-2015 modification. Accessed 9-8-2015 at: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_rail_accidents_%282000%E2%80%9309%29