A train operator is dead and at least 23 other individuals are injured after a tree fell on the New Jersey River Line track on Monday morning, Oct. 14.
The train was traveling southbound from Trenton, N.J. when it struck a tree north of the Roebling Station at approximately 6:04 a.m., New Jersey Transit says in a statement shared with PEOPLE.
“Of the 42 customers on board, 23 sustained non-life-threatening injuries, mostly minor. The train operator is confirmed deceased. The remaining 19 passengers were accommodated by a bus,” the statement adds.
In an interview with WJAR, Norris Young, one of the train’s passengers, recalled seeing multiple people sustain graphic injuries.
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“One gentleman had a gash, he was bleeding from the head. One had an open wound, a complete open wound on his head,” he told the outlet, describing the tree as “gigantic.”
While the operator’s identity has not been released, Young told the outlet that he had developed a rapport with her.
“To have someone, even from that small affiliation, just ‘how you doing?’ You know, wake up in the morning, how you doing? Just you know the smile and the pleasant hello, you know in the morning, you know when you get on there, and the next time you see this person they’re just bludgeoned. Bludgeoned,” he said.
“She was just laying there and there was nothing nobody could do,” said Young.
New Jersey Governor Phil Murphy responded to the incident on X, writing, “I have been briefed on an accident on the @NJTRANSIT_RL earlier today in which the light rail struck a tree on the tracks, leading to the death of the train operator and injuring passengers. An investigation is underway. Our prayers are with all affected by this tragic incident.”
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While River LINE service continues to be suspended in both directions between Florence and Trenton, a substitute bus service is being provided. It’s is not yet known what caused the tree to fall on the tracks. The New Jersey Transit Police are investigating the incident.