Two Cars Derail on Metro's Red Line

BETHESDA, Md. - Metro officials say there will be delays all weekend long on the Red Line after two cars on two different Metrorail trains derailed late Friday afternoon.

It happened on the Red Line near the Bethesda station just before 5 p.m. Metro officials tell FOX 5 they initially thought that a six-car train—train #125-- headed into D.C. had brake problems as it was pulling into the Bethesda station, and Metro sent a second train—train #204-- in to pull it out. Officials say that's when they realized that the last car on the first train had derailed.

Then, officials say the first car on the second trail also derailed. Now, Metro says they believe track damage caused both derailments.

Officials say the first train was carrying approximately 84 passengers at the time of the incident. No injuries were reported. There were no passengers on the second train.

Passengers say the felt a big jolt, and then came the sparks and smoke. Some described the terror.

"There was a big bump and we saw sparks on the side of the train, and then smoke started coming in the car," said Nick Sundback, a passenger on the train.

"Scary, very scary," said Tonie Winters, another passenger. "It was like something out of the movies."

"We have to do an accident investigation, so we have trains sharing tracks from Medical Center to Friendship Heights on the Red Line," Candace Smith, a Metro spokesperson. "Additionally, we're running shuttle service as well."

For over an hour, traffic on busy Wisconsin Avenue was virtually at a standstill.

"We couldn't see anything, but it was mighty uncomfortable," said another passenger named Paulo. "It was packed like sardines."

Metro says riders should expect delays in both directions on the Red Line for the entire weekend. Trains are sharing one track between the Friendship Heights and Medical Center Metrorail stations.

Officials say a third train was able to take stranded passengers to their destination. Now, crews are working to fix the damaged tracks, and they say that could last all weekend. They say they have a few hundred feet of track that needs to be fixed, and the trains involved have to be moved out of the way.

Follow this link for the latest updates on train arrival and departure times from Metro.