Thursday, 4:30 PM
Two killed in commuter rail crash in Woburn
By Raja Mishra, Globe Staff
A commuter rail train plowed into a work crew at a Woburn track crossing, killing two workers and critically injuring another, while injuring several passengers as the massive locomotive lurched to a halt.
The violent collision left a mangled piece of repair equipment lying on the side of the tracks, as dozens of emergency crews descended on the scene.
MBTA officials said investigators are trying to determine why a track switching device was improperly set. The switch should have directed the commuter train on a track parallel to the one the workers were on, but instead sent the train straight into them.
The Boston-bound train was coming from Lowell when it hit the crew at about 2 p.m. just south of Mishawum Station and north of Montvale Avenue in Woburn. The six-person work crew had been replacing ties on the track since just after morning rush hour, said Massachusetts Bay Transportation officials. A dispatcher at the operations control center in Somerville had been notified that the crew was in place. Eight other trains had been through the area prior to the accident, said MBTA spokesman Joe Pesaturo.
The crew and the tie-replacing equipment took a direct hit from the train, which sustained several shattered windows but no significant damage. At least 10 of the 43 passengers on board were shaken up and transported to local hospitals, according to local emergency workers. None of the 10 passengers had visible signs of injuries.
Transit officials identified of the crew members killed today as Christopher Macaulay, 30, of Brentwood, N.H., and James Zipps, 54, of Lowell.
Another crew member, John Hickey, 50, of Lowell, was flown to Boston Medical Center, and crew member, Edwin Olson, 55, also of Lowell, was rushed to Lahey Clinic Medical Center in Burlington. The two other surviving workers, who were not identified because their families had not been notified, were taken to Winchester Hospital.
The workers were employed by the Massachusetts Bay Commuter Railroad, a private consortium under contract to operate and maintain the MBTA's rail fleet. The MBTA bused the stranded passengers to train stations in Woburn and Winchester, where they could continue on other trains.
"MBCR is stunned and deeply saddened by today's horrific tragedy. Our hearts go out to the family and loved ones of these workers," said Richard A Davey, Jr., general counsel for the MBCR.
Justin Pimpare, an environmental engineer on his way back home to Boston from his Lowell office, was on the train's second car at the time of the crash.
"It was like going from 50 mph to zero," he said. "We were traveling along and I heard a large bang and the train came to a screeching halt. It felt like we had been derailed."
His colleague, Maureen McClelland, 55, a toxicologist from Boston, said, "We got knocked into our seats and then went forward."
Her head and hands were driven into the seat back, causing slight bruising on her knuckles. But she said most passengers in her car took it in stride.
"There was not mass panic," said McClelland.
