August 20, 2018

Northeast Philly junkyard fire leads to SEPTA, Amtrak delays

By Marielle Mondon
PhillyVoice Staff

Thom Carroll/PhillyVoice

A Philadelphia-bound SEPTA Regional Rail Train at the East Falls Station, Tues. Oct. 17, 2017.

A junkyard fire that erupted in Northeast Philadelphia on Sunday evening has caused suspended and delayed train service throughout the region.

The fire occurred at the intersection of Torresdale and Adams avenues in the Frankford area, destroying a warehouse and sending thick black smoke into the air, reaching high-tension power lines.

The intense fire wore on for hours Sunday, severely delaying or canceling scheduled Amtrak trains along the Northeast Corridor.

Heads up: Mass transit alert- this massive junkyard fire impacted rail service last night. We’re getting updated from @Amtrak @NJTRANSIT & @SEPTA this am. @NBCPhiladelphia @MattDeLucia pic.twitter.com/OE4oj1THMa
— Tracy Davidson (@tracydavidson) August 20, 2018

Junkyard fire in the Frankford section of Philadelphia causing major transit delays on Amtrak and Septa. It’s burning close to the tracks. We’re speaking with travelers who are stuck at 30th Street Station @NBCPhiladelphia at 11pm @DeniseNakanoTV pic.twitter.com/IvS9QNwZzH
— Drew Smith (@drewsmithtv) August 20, 2018

Conductor on Amtrak train between Trenton and Philly (now backtracking to Trenton slowly after two hours of standstill) announces junkyard fire in Philly is expected to rage for another three or four hours.
— Jonathan Allen (@jonallendc) August 20, 2018

Officials from both SEPTA and Amtrak began inspecting the tracks after the fire fell beside the rail lines. As crews continued to work on the scene, two trains resumed service by early Monday. By 7 a.m. Monday, Amtrak announced all tracks on the Northeast Corridor had reopened, though some trains have still been canceled.

UPDATE SERVICE DISRUPTION: Two out of four tracks through PHL are now open for service to resume through the area. Please expect delays due to significant rail congestion. Thank you for your patience as we work to restore service.
— Amtrak Northeast (@AmtrakNEC) August 20, 2018

UPDATE: All tracks that were closed due to last night's fire near PHL have reopened. Service has resumed normal operations on the Northeast Corridor.
— Amtrak Northeast (@AmtrakNEC) August 20, 2018

Train 180 from WAS to NYP has been canceled for today. Sorry for the inconvenience.
— Amtrak Northeast (@AmtrakNEC) August 20, 2018

SEPTA was forced to suspend its regional rail service to Trenton, and NJ Transit trains traveling to Atlantic City were suspended, too.

Around 6 a.m. Monday, SEPTA announced all trains were back in service, though they appear to be running with ongoing delays.

Thorndale: Service is suspended until further notice between Thorndale and Malvern due to Amtrak's track problems.
— SEPTA (@SEPTA) August 20, 2018

Thorndale: Service is suspended between Thorndale and Malvern until approximately 6:45 AM, due to Amtrak's track problems.
— SEPTA (@SEPTA) August 20, 2018