32 injured when Amtrak train headed to Chicago derails

Thirty-two people were injured early Monday when an Amtrak train en route to Chicago derailed in Kansas.

Amtrak Southwest Chief Train 4, traveling from Los Angeles on BNSF tracks, derailed eight of its 10 cars shortly after midnight about 20 miles west of Dodge City, Kansas, according to a statement from Amtrak.

Thirty-two passengers were taken to Western Plains Medical Complex in Dodge City and St. Catherine’s Hospital in Garden City, according to to the statement. Twenty-nine passengers have already been discharged from hospitals.

There were 131 passengers and 14 crew members on board the train at the time, according to Amtrak.

The remaining passengers were taken to the 4-H Recreation Center in Cimarron, Kansas, and will be provided alternate transportation to their final destination, Amtrak said. The Red Cross and other relief agencies were dispatched to provide assistance to those passengers.

Amtrak said the transit agency is cooperating with the NTSB’s investigation. Federal Railroad Administration investigators have also arrived at the scene.

The westbound Southwest Chief that left Chicago Sunday afternoon had been due in Dodge City at 5:25 a.m. Monday; it detoured around the derailment site beginning in Newton, Kansas, and followed a different route through Albuquerque, N.M., according to Amtrak. Monday’s westbound departure, which left Chicago at 3 p.m., was to follow that detour as well, according to the railroad.

Anyone with questions about friends and family on the derailed train should call Amtrak’s emergency hotline at (800) 523-9101.