Green Line Restored, 14 Hospitalized in Train Derailment

Minor injuries, CTA train service has returned to normal

Fourteen people were hospitalized with “minor’ injuries after a CTA Green Line train car derailed Saturday morning on the elevated tracks on the South Side.

Power to the Green Line was restored around 5 p.m. Saturday and train were running their regular routes, according to CTA spokeswoman Katelyn Thrall. 

Thrall said the train derailed about 11:55 a.m. at the 59th Street junction, where the Ashland Branch meets the east 63rd Branch.

Fire Media Affairs Director Larry Langford said the incident happened as the train turned onto the main line to go north. Only one car of the six-car train left the tracks, but that car remained upright.

Firefighters helped 48 people off the train and down a CTA stairway at the 59th Street tower. Fourteen passengers were taken to local hospitals with “bumps and bruises.” Thirty-four passengers refused treatment, Langford said.

Green Line trains are operating between the Harlem/lake and Garfield stations only. Service between the Garfield and 63rd Street/Cottage Grove stations are suspended, according to the CTA’s Web site.

Shuttle buses are replacing suspended rail service, Thrall said. Customers should allow extra travel times, according to the Web site.

The cause of the derailment remained under investigation Saturday afternoon. Sources said CTA officials were investigating a possible switching problem.

About a dozen ambulances responded to the EMS Plan 2, Langford said.

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