• Video
  • Shop
  • Culture
  • Family
  • Wellness
  • Food
  • Living
  • Style
  • Travel
  • News
  • Book Club
  • Newsletter
  • Privacy Policy
  • Your US State Privacy Rights
  • Children's Online Privacy Policy
  • Interest-Based Ads
  • Terms of Use
  • Your Privacy Choices
  • Contact Us
  • Recalls and Product Safety Alerts
  • © 2026 ABC News
  • News

Amtrak Train Crash: Video Timeline of What We Know

1:20
Amtrak Train Crash: Timeline of What We Know So Far
Joseph Kaczmarek/AP Photo
ByOLIVIA SMITH
May 13, 2015, 5:58 PM

— -- Amtrak Northeast Regional Train 188 heading from Washington, D.C., to New York City derailed in Philadelphia on Tuesday night killing at least six people.

Officials say the investigation is still underway.

Related Articles

Amtrak Crash: Investigators Recover Train's Black Box, Probe Continues

Related Articles

Amtrak Crash: NTSB Looking for Clues at Scene of Philadelphia Amtrak Derailment

Related Articles

Amtrak Crash: Passengers Recall Panic, Fear After Train Derailment

Here’s what we know so far:

May 12, 9:28 p.m.

Amtrak Train 188 derails in Philadelphia. Six cars overturn in the crash, and the engine separates from the train, officials said.

Amtrak reports 238 passengers and five crew members were on board at the time of the incident.

11 p.m.

Amtrak cancels all service between New York and Philadelphia.

“It is an absolute disastrous mess,” Philadelphia Mayor Michael Nutter said. “Never seen anything like this in my life.”

A crime scene investigator looks inside a train car after a train wreck, Tuesday, May 12, 2015, near Philadelphia.

May 13

The death toll climbs to six. Officials say the number of critical injuries is at least 10. Hundreds of people are treated at hospitals in the area.

Officials say they cannot confirm if everyone is accounted for, and fear more are dead in the wreckage.

The investigation is ongoing, but officials say the preliminary focus of the probe is on the speed of the train.

10:15 a.m.

Nutter says the black box that has been recovered from the train is under analysis, and there is no information from it yet.

The train conductor was injured and treated, and is giving a statement to investigators, according to Nutter.

The NTSB is on the scene, looking into all facets of the derailment.

2:30 p.m.

The death toll rises to at least seven people.


The site of the crash echoes an accident from 1943, when a Pennsylvania Railroad train crashed at Frankford Junction in Philadelphia. Seventy-nine people died and 117 others were injured. As the train traveled between Washington, D.C., and New York City, an overhead journal box overheated, causing one of the wheel axles to fail. Smoke and flames could be seen underneath the seventh car, but before workers could stop the train, the car jumped the tracks.

Get real-time updates as this story unfolds. To start, just "star" this story in ABC News' phone app. Download ABC News for iPhone here or ABC News for Android here.

Up Next in News—

Minnesota man credited with saving kids, school bus driver surprised with check

October 24, 2026

Seasonal job hiring at Amazon, UPS, Spirit Halloween surging

October 22, 2026

Elizabeth Holmes documentary: What to know, how to watch

October 15, 2026

Crew begins search for Amelia Earhart on remote island

October 14, 2026

Shop GMA Favorites

ABC will receive a commission for purchases made through these links.

Sponsored Content by Taboola

The latest lifestyle and entertainment news and inspiration for how to live your best life - all from Good Morning America.
  • Contests
  • Terms of Use
  • Privacy Policy
  • Your Privacy Choices
  • Children’s Online Privacy Policy
  • Advertise with us
  • Your US State Privacy Rights
  • Interest-Based Ads
  • About Nielsen Measurement
  • Press
  • Feedback
  • Shop FAQs
  • ABC News
  • ABC
  • All Videos
  • All Topics
  • Sitemap
  • Recalls and Product Safety Alerts

© 2026 ABC News
  • Privacy Policy— 
  • Your US State Privacy Rights— 
  • Children's Online Privacy Policy— 
  • Interest-Based Ads— 
  • Terms of Use— 
  • Your Privacy Choices— 
  • Contact Us— 
  • Recalls and Product Safety Alerts— 

© 2026 ABC News