One Fatality and Hundreds of Injuries After New Jersey Train Accident.

Negligent and careless acts involving trains can result in serious injuries or even deaths.  In addition to often carrying hundreds of passengers and crew members at a time, trains can weigh in excess of hundreds of tons and travel at high speeds, giving them a tremendous capacity to do harm. Every year, about 1,000 people die in train accidents in Massachusetts alone.  If a train accident personal injury is brought about by a conductor’s or other person’s negligence, then the injured victim may have a meritorious personal injury lawsuit to bring.

Just recently, a commuter train in Hoboken, New Jersey failed to stop in time and crashed into the barrier at the end of the terminal’s tracks, causing the train to derail and crash into the terminal.  The train rolled over several times and the terminal itself was also severely damaged, with a portion of the roof collapsing onto commuters below.  As a reporter from nytimes.com describes the incident: “the crash sent passengers flying out of their seats in a violent tumble. Then the lights cut out. Shouts and cries underscored the sense of panic. And after passengers managed to escape from the train, many crawling through its windows, they emerged to find the station a mess of metal beams, smoke and treacherously hanging wires.”

Officials reported that the train is supposed to stop ten to twenty feet from the bumper and reduce its speed to no more than 10 miles per hour when entering the station.   The train that caused the accident must have been traveling at several times that speed for such a high degree of damage to have occurred, and it is currently unclear why the train failed to stop.   A reported 114 people were injured as a result of the train crash, and tragically thirty-four-year-old Bittar de Kroon died.  The majority of the injuries seem to have come from some of the train’s 250 passengers. While the crash is currently under investigation, if it is shown to have been caused by conductor error or by the negligence of the train company, they could face a tremendous amount of damages in a negligence personal injury lawsuit.

Common carriers, such as trains, subways and trolleys, owe a heightened duty of care to their passengers under applicable state and federal law. Therefore, if you are injured due to the negligence of a railway company or operator of a common carrier, you may be entitled to receive money damages for their breach of care. You owe it to yourself to learn more about your legal options and rights.  Call us 24/7 at 617-787-3700 or email us at info@gilhoylaw.com to speak with one of our train accident injury lawyer specialists.

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