NTSB: Derailed Michigan Train Was on Wrong Track

Federal officials say an Amtrak train that derailed in southwestern Michigan was on the wrong track due to a reversed switch.

The National Transportation Safety Board issued a statement Tuesday saying the switch sent the passenger train into a rail yard. It says the train stopped about 21 feet from an empty ballast hopper car that was stored on the track.

The Amtrak train was traveling about 60 mph from Chicago to Pontiac, north of Detroit, on Sunday when two of its locomotives and one or more coaches derailed. It happened near Niles, just north of the Indiana state line. About a dozen people were injured.

Amtrak says it’s cooperating with the investigation. The train was carrying about 174 passengers and four crew members.

The NTSB and others are investigating.