DODGE CITY, KS (CNN) — At least 11 people were sent to the hospital early Monday morning after an Amtrak train bound for Chicago from Los Angeles derailed in rural Kansas, the rail line said.
Five of the train’s nine passenger cars came off the tracks in Grey County, about 20 miles west of Dodge City, shortly after midnight Central Time.
Initially, Amtrak spokesman Craig Schulz said, “reports are that there are no life-threatening injuries.”
Later, Schulz added that “Local emergency responders provided on-site response, with approximately 11 passengers transported to Western Plains Hospital in Dodge City.” He didn’t elaborate on the nature of the injuries.
The remaining 117 passengers and 14 crew members were taken to a local 4-H recreation center, where the Red Cross and other relief agencies tended to their needs. Amtrak says it’s working to find them alternate transportation to their final destinations. The rail line says it’s also working with BNSF, the operator of the tracks where the derailment took place, in hopes of finding out what caused the accident.
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