Community Corner

Damage to Wires Halts Service on New Haven Line

Some passengers stranded for hours.

Metro-North's New Haven line remained shut down between Stamford and Grand Central Terminal as of 6:30 Saturday evening due to extensive wire damage.

The Metropolitan Transportation Authority e-blast sent out at 7:30 p.m. reported that crews are working to fix the damage but it will probably not restore service Saturday evening. There is limited shuttle service between Stamford and Grand Central Terminal available, and riders should anticipate all trips taking up to an hour and a half longer than normal.

Pantographs, the arms that connect up to the electrical lines, got snarled on two trains on separate tracks within 30 minutes. One of the four tracks was already out of service and the two incidents, which happened around 3:15 p.m. and then again at 3:45 p.m. west of Greenwich, caused all trains to halt.

Find out what's happening in Westportwith free, real-time updates from Patch.

Some passengers were forced to remain on trains for hours Saturday afternoon.

Dan Brucker, Metro-North spokesman, said he wasn't aware yet how many passengers might have been stranded, but at least one rider who was stuck on a train outside the Port Chester station for about three hours said the heat had prompted some passengers to need medical attention.

Find out what's happening in Westportwith free, real-time updates from Patch.

Brett Masterson, ad manager for Rye Patch, said his train stopped outside Port Chester around 3 p.m. and they were finally let off at 6:15 p.m.

"It was overall a bad situation,"  Masterson said. "One passenger jumped off while we were stopped and ran into the woods. Other passengers were told to stay on the train due to live rails. There were numerous people who needed medical attention due to asthma and overheating. They were let off the train."

Police came on the train at one point to calm everyone, he said.

It's not always possible to get people off the trains safely, Brucker said, and the damage in this case was extensive.


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