May 14, 2015
An Amtrak conductor who previously worked on Train 188 told a Tampa ABC affiliate that some type of "outside force" likely caused the engineer to increase speed to more than 100 mph.
Michael Callanan, who says he trained the unidentified conductor of the derailed Amtrak train, has worked the exact route the train traveled before derailing Tuesday night, killing eight people and injuring more than 200 others.
Callanan says he doubts the engineer, identified as Brandon Bostian of New York City, would speed in the Frankford Junction area, saying engineers on the route quickly learn the location and speed limits of any given section. He called the Port Richmond neighborhood where the train derailed a "bad area," noting Amtrak trains have been stoned up and down the Northeast Corridor.
"My take on the whole thing is there must have been impact on the window to get that kind of damage," Callanan said. "The whole train, including the engine, has what we call 'FRA Type II glazing,' which is essentially bullet-proof glass, throughout the whole train. So it takes a lot of force to even crack the window. And when I saw that on the right-hand side of the engine, it looks like it struck something and I don't think it was the guy hitting his head."
A SEPTA commuter train traveling on the same tracks made an emergency stop moments before the Amtrak train derailed. An unknown projectile reportedly hit and cracked the engineer's window, the agency reported.
SEPTA spokeswoman Jerri Williams said Wednesday that "there is no indication at this time that the two incidents are related in any way."
