One dead, 108 hurt in New Jersey train crash

Hoboken (US), September 29 

A packed commuter train ploughed into a station in New Jersey during the morning rush hour today, killing one person and injuring 108, some of them critically, the state's governor said.

New Jersey Governor Chris Christie said the train entered the station at Hoboken “at a high rate of speed” and “crashed through the barriers, bringing it into the interior wall” of the terminal.

A woman who was standing on the platform was hit and killed by debris from the crash, Christie said. She was the only confirmed fatality.

The train's driver was in serious condition and being treated at a local hospital but was cooperating with the crash probe, he said. “We have no indication that this is anything but a tragic accident,” Christie said, adding that an investigation was underway.

Video and photos on social media showed major damage to the transit choke point just over the Hudson river from Manhattan, with the train tangled in wires and debris from what appeared to be caved in portions of the roof.

The Hoboken terminal is a major transfer point for New Jersey trains and buses, as well as ferries and the PATH commuter train that take passengers to New York. Kenneth Garay, chief medical officer at Jersey City medical centre, said its surgeons were all hands on deck. — AFP