CRESCENT CITY, Fla.?The track where an Amtrak Auto Train derailed in a mess of mangled cars and rails was cleared Sunday, allowing the first trains to pass through this northern Florida town since the accident.
The original tracks were torn out by Thursday’s derailment, which killed four people and injured over 150. The first coal train that moved through Sunday morning was on temporary rails, said railroad authorities.
The 39-foot-long sections of temporary track can hold slow-moving trains at 10 mph. The company plans to make improvements this week to allow the temporary tracks to withstand faster trains. An average of 28 trains a day are normally scheduled there.
Thursday’s Auto Train had been headed for Washington with 418 passengers and 34 crew members, as well as 200 automobiles.
Amtrak officials hoped to have the Auto Train running again by Tuesday.