NTSB investigating train collisions in Pennsylvania, Tennessee

The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) has launched investigations into two separate train collisions that occurred Feb. 22 and Feb. 23, the later of which caused the death of a railroad maintenance worker.

On Feb. 23, an Amtrak train struck and killed an Amtrak maintenance worker in Lancaster, Pennsylvania, NTSB officials said in an X.com post. The worker was pronounced dead at the scene. The coroner said the worker was walking on the tracks when he was struck at around 11:30 a.m. local time, according to a local news report. All service on Amtrak's Keystone Service route was suspended for the rest of the day.

Meanwhile, on Feb. 22, a CN freight train struck an Amtrak train carrying 128 passengers in Memphis, Tennessee, according to the NTSB. Three injuries were reported, and two people were taken to the hospital with noncritical injuries, according to a local news report. The incident occurred after a CN train came into contact with the Amtrak train, which was on route from Chicago to New Orleans and stopped in Memphis, according to the report. The freight train was traveling "at a slow rate of speed," Amtrak officials said, according to the news report.

Also, on Feb. 19 the NTSB announced on X.com it has opened the public docket for its investigation into a July 2026 derailment of a CN train in Sardis, Mississippi. The derailment resulted in a hazardous materials release but no injuries. The incident occurred on track owned by the Grenada Railroad, a subsidiary of Pinsly Railroad Co. The CN train derailed 21 mixed-freight rail cars on the deck of a 130-foot-long bridge. Four tank cars containing hazardous materials were among those derailed. One tank car, a DOT-111, released about 10,500 gallons of sodium hydroxide, according to the NTSB incident report summary. CN and Grenada Railroad estimate damages to be about $2 million.

The derailment investigation is ongoing and will focus on Grenada Railroad's track and bridge maintenance procedures; CN operating rules related to train operation and assembly; in-depth analysis of event and image recorder data; and rolling stock engineering and manufacturing processes, the NTSB docket states.