Skip to main content

NTSB: Crash wiped out signal that could hold clues

HOXIE, Ark. (AP) — The National Transportation Safety Board says a trackside signal that could hold clues to a fatal head-on train collision in Arkansas was damaged in the crash but that investigators still hope to recover its data.

NTSB investigator Michael Hiller said Tuesday a southbound train was told to slow down as a northbound train approached a parallel track. He said it should have been directed to stop at the next signal, but that signal was mangled during the accident. Investigators hope they can recover its data and analyze the information.

The trains collided early Sunday, killing two Union Pacific employees and injuring two others near Hoxie in northeastern Arkansas.

The speed limit for trains near Hoxie is 50 mph. Emergency crews recovered each train’s data recorder.

Copyright 2014 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

Hail to the chief: Take our presidential trivia quiz

EDITOR'S NOTE: WTOP first brought you this quiz in 2019. Presidents Day is coming. How well do you know the less-important facts about the nation's leaders? Take WTOP's quiz — with any luck, it won't take you all Presidents Day to finish it.
Read Next Story