Metro-North train crash survivor marks 10 years since disaster in Valhalla
NEW YORK -- Ten years ago, a Metro-North train smashed into an SUV in Valhalla, New York, killing the driver and dislodging the third rail, which penetrated the train and killed five passengers.
It was the worst accident in the history of the commuter rail.
"There's a train, Metro-North, right at the Valhalla station, past Lakeview, just exploded... the front car just exploded!" a 911 caller described.
CBS News New York's Tony Aiello spoke with a survivor for a look back at the horror on the Harlem Line.
A survivor's story
Caroline Hermans said it's been a difficult decade since she sat in the front car of Train 659 on Feb. 3, 2015.
"When I think back, it seems so surreal, and vivid and sad," Hermans said. "For me, it was like a turning point. Things were one way before, and things were different afterwards."
The National Transportation Safety Board said "for undetermined reasons" driver Ellen Brody stopped her SUV on the tracks at the Commerce Street crossing and failed to drive off as the train approached and made impact.
"The Brody vehicle was pushed by the train into the third rail, and the third rail punctured her car, and began to be elevated upward and went straight into the first car of the train," explained attorney Duke Maloney, who represents Hermans and other passengers in the lead car.
"All of a sudden people hear a bang, and the next thing they know, massive pieces of metal are shooting towards them," Aiello noted.
"They hear metal scraping, see sparks, and pieces of long steel flying through the train car," Maloney replied.
"And I just saw it come through the car," said Hermans. "It hit the man next to me, square in the forehead, and his neck went back."
That man was Walter Liedtke, a renowned art scholar. He was killed sitting in the seat Hermans usually occupied.
"It made me think about things like, why him and not me, and OK, what do I do with my life?" she said.
Hermans is one of numerous survivors still waiting for a trial or settlement with Metro-North.
Third rail at center of investigation
A two-year NTSB probe said Brody caused the accident, while spotlighting the Harlem Line's third rail.
"This is a very unique and unusual designed third rail," said Maloney.
Maloney said the Harlem Line's third rail sits higher than the Long Island Rail Road's, for example, making it more likely to complicate collisions at grade crossings.
The NTSB also pointed to the "splice bars" that firmly connect the long pieces of third rail. The bars, which are still used today, are not designed to break away in a controlled manner under extreme conditions.
"It would have broken that connection and you would not have had the long spear go inside the train," Maloney said. "It's true, the odds of it happening again are low. But the outcome is catastrophic. The fix is easy, it's feasible, it's not that expensive."
Metro-North hired a firm to conduct a risk assessment, which determined another catastrophic incident was "extremely improbable," and the risks of the current third rail setup are "acceptable."
Last year, a jury determined the design of the third rail was a significant factor in the deaths and injuries.
"I suffered PTSD and mental anguish. Yes, that's terrible. But you think about the people who ... lost their lives," Hermans said.
Ten years have passed, but the pain and anguish are not going away.