1 dead, dozens hurt when smoke fills Washington, D.C., subway station

One person died and dozens more were taken to hospitals after smoke mysteriously filled a subway tunnel and a major Metro station in Washington, D.C., on Monday afternoon and forced evacuations, officials said.

Eighty-four patients were taken to hospitals and more than 200 people were evaluated for possible injuries after the incident at one of Washington’s busiest rail stations, fire officials said on Twitter. One firefighter was injured.

Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority officials said the National Transportation Safety Board had opened an investigation. Representatives for local hospitals and the NTSB could not be immediately reached for comment after hours Monday.

A spokesman for the fire department did not respond to requests for comment and rail officials did not disclose the nature of the injuries, directing further questions to the NTSB.

Commuters were forced to find other ways home during rush hour after the incident began at L’Enfant Plaza D.C. Metro rail station shortly after 3 p.m., according to a Metro spokeswoman and the D.C. Fire and EMS Department.

Social media photos showed haze filling the underground station, which is near the National Mall and the Smithsonian National Air and Space Museum. Photos also showed smoke filling the cabin of a train that Metro spokeswoman Caroline Laurin said had stopped in a nearby tunnel as a precaution.

Firefighters evacuated the station as well as the passengers stuck in the train, Laurin told the Los Angeles Times.

“That was easily the worst Metro ride of my life,” tweeted one rider, who identified himself as Jonathan Rogers, posting photos of firefighters and passengers in a darkened cabin and then evacuating down a dark subway tunnel. “Worst part? I got on the Yellow Line by accident.”

Portions of both the Green and Yellow lines, which share a track running through the station, have been shut down while officials investigate the source of the smoke.

The smoke cleared after officials turned on exhaust fans in the station and deactivated the electric third rail that powers the trains, Laurin said.

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