Lightning Strike Hits Rail Operations in East, Midwest
- Share via
RICHMOND, Va. — A lightning strike Thursday at a railroad communication center slowed or halted rail traffic, including 11 Amtrak trains, in parts of the East and Midwest.
Also affected was radio communication between train crews and dispatchers, a CSX Transportation spokesman said. The lightning struck a CSX communication center in Jacksonville, Fla.
The lightning strike at 5:30 p.m. EDT knocked out the company’s signal system between Chicago and Philadelphia, in portions of Michigan, and in the Kentucky-West Virginia coal region, said CSX spokesman Adam Hollingsworth.
He said 200 trains were affected by the outage, including some on commuter lines Virginia Railway Express and Maryland Area Rail Commuter.
Sign up for Essential California
The most important California stories and recommendations in your inbox every morning.
You may occasionally receive promotional content from the Los Angeles Times.
More From the Los Angeles Times
Podcasts
John Orr was a renowned fire investigator who was also a prolific arsonist, and whose thinly veiled novel helped to convict him. In this episode we hear from the fire captain who first suspected him—and from Orr himself.
Madison McGhee is joined by legendary Dateline host Josh Mankiewicz and esteemed L.A. Times Reporter Richard Winton as the three of them dive into all-things Menendez Brothers, the good, the bad, and the still unknown.
NPR climate editor Sadie Babits talks about why the media has long overlooked the climate crisis, and how that’s starting to change.
