Documentary Shows Metro Crash Aftermath

WASHINGTON, D.C. - Three months after the worst train accident in the history of D.C.'s Metro system, a documentary shot mostly by D.C. firefighters is providing insight about just what happened in the moments after the horrific accident.

"You had mothers, daughters, fathers, children involved-- all walks of life involved-- that were killed or injured," said D.C. Fire & EMS spokesman Pete Piringer.

In addition to footage of emergency crews rescuing victims and scouring the wreckage, the video includes first-hand accounts from first responders.

"I got out of my car, I could see probably 150 people wondering around the track bed," said Chief Lawrence Shultz, assistant chief of operations for D.C. Fire, in the video. "I was looking at our members physically picking people up and carrying them out in their hands."

"It was kind of surreal, almost," Shultz continued. "There wasn't any screaming, any crying-- it wasn't people running away. They were just kind of walking away from the incident."

There are stories about what they saw, and details about what they did.

"What can you say to a person when they say, 'Am I going to die?'" said Althea Stiles, an EMT. "You just have to be there. That human side, professional side has to blend."

"This had a huge impact on a lot of emotions," said Piringer. "I think that comes out with some of the first responders."

It is emotional, graphic, and heroic.

"The bravery of those folks to operate in those conditions, the ingenuity to know what to do, the training, skill set, professionalism that was brought to bear was just tremendous," said Chief Dennis Rubin.

It is difficult to capture the magnitude of this accident in just a few minutes, but out of this tragedy comes a chance to learn and be even better.

"We've had a number of requests from the region and throughout the country from fire service and fire personnel to talk to them about the lessons learned," said Piringer.

If you'd like to see the entire 12-minute documentary, click on the videos below.

Part 1

Part 2