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Calls for automatic speed control system

Officials ID woman killed in crash

What it was like after the crash

HOBOKEN -- The New Jersey Transit train that crashed at the Hoboken terminal Thursday was equipped with cameras and investigators will work to review its data recorder as they investigate the deadly wreck, a National Transportation Safety Board official said.

In the 8:45 a.m. crash, the Pascack Valley line train slammed through a barrier in the station, causing major structural damage and sending commuters in chaos. Officials said 114 people were hurt and one person was killed in the crash.

A woman standing on the platform, identified by the State Medical Examiner's Office as Fabiola Bittar de Kroon, 34, of Hoboken, was hit by debris and killed, according to Gov. Chris Christie.

At a press briefing Thursday afternoon, NTSB Vice Chairman T. Bella Dinh-Zarr said investigators had to contend with major damage to the historic terminal building as they worked to recover possible evidence. The canopy of the station building collapsed on top of a train car and there could be asbestos in the building, she said.

"It's very unsafe there, and there's some potential structural damage," Dinh-Zarr said.

"We will only proceed to inspect the cars when it is safe to do so," the NTSB official said. "It may be tomorrow afternoon before we can safely do that, but we will be proceeding with other aspects of the investigation until then."

The train had outward-facing video recorders on both ends of the train, she said. An event recorder will also likely reveal information including the train's speed and braking system.

"We will not be determining a probable cause while on scene, and we do not speculate what caused the accident," Dinh-Zarr said told reporters at an evening press conference in Hoboken.

Investigators will "absolutely" look at if automatic speed control system called Positive Train Control could have prevented the crash, she said. A separate NTSB probe found the lack of an automated speed control system contributed to another train crash at the same station on Mother's Day 2011.

The train had three passenger cars and a locomotive, which was at the rear of the train, Dinh-Zarr said. The speed limit going into the station is 10 mph, but officials would not say how fast the train was going when the crash occurred.

NTSB officials will likely be on scene for seven to 10 days, Dinh-Zarr said.

"Our mission is not just to understand what happened, but to understand why it happened," she said at the briefing.

Meanwhile, the NJ Transit engineer operating the train was released from an area hospital and cooperating with law enforcement officials, Christie told reporters in Hoboken. Officials would not speculate on what caused the wreck, but said the train was clearly traveling at a high speed.

"The train came in a high rate of speed and crashed through all the barriers," Christie told reporters at an afternoon briefing.

New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo also toured the crash scene in Hoboken with Christie.

"The power of the train coming in is devastating at impact," Cuomo said.

Commuters described a harrowing scene that unfolded during the peak of the morning rush. Passenger Jamie Weatherhead-Saul, of Wood-Ridge, said she had just sent a text message and was standing near the door getting ready to disembark, but realized the train was not slowing down as it approached the packed station.

"Just a second before I was texting...It just happened," Weatherhead-Saul said between tears near the crash scene. "It was a second's notice and everybody was just on the ground screaming."

"In that moment, that was life or death," Weatherhead-Saul added. "There was no indication of whether the train was going to actually stop."

The train was "extremely packed" as it crashed, she said.

"There were people whose faces were sliced opened, eyes swollen, gashes to their face. A lot of twisted knees or ankles," Weatherhead-Saul said.

"I'm just shaken," she added. "I got some pain from the impact, but nothing in comparison to what people are probably feeling."

River Edge lawyer Alex Wulwick, who has been riding New Jersey Transit to work in Manhattan for 30 years, said he was in the rear of the first car, standing in front of his rear-facing seat when the crash happened.

"Just all of a sudden the lights went out, and everyone was thrown forward" Wulwick said. He was thrown into his seat, but was not injured.

"There was a tremendous jolt, and it seemed like we were on a bit of an incline, and then we kept going," Wulwick added. "There was a horrendous sound of crashing, just a loud, scary, hard sound. It seemed like we were going for a little bit. When I got out and saw the damage, it was amazing how far the train went."

Wulwick said he didn't think the train was traveling faster than usual.

"It didn't seem anything out of the ordinary," he added. "I didn't seem like it was going faster than it should have been."

Speaking after being treated and discharged from Jersey City Medical Center, Mike Scelzo said he felt a massive jolt while riding the train.

"Everyone was trying to figure out what happened ... there was a lot of dust and screaming and crying," he added. "Screams of shock."

Scelzo, who boarded the train in Oradell, said he suffered cuts to his face and he appeared to have a black eye.

"I was incredibly lucky," he told reporters.

Minutes after the crash, police and emergency crews rushed to the scene. A police officer using a loud speaker said "mass casualty incident" at the terminal and directed all foot traffic to Washington Street.

Emergency medical responders from across the region also converged on the scene, including ambulances from as far away as Morris, Sussex and Monmouth counties. The New York City fire department also deployed 10 ambulances to the scene, a spokesman for Mayor Bill de Blasio said on Twitter.

The crash halted train service on some of the region's busiest commuter lines. All NJ Transit train service into and out of the Hoboken station is suspended until further notice, officials said Thursday afternoon. PATH service resumed around 3 p.m.

At the 33th Street PATH station in New York City, commuters described much lighter than usual crowds and a smooth ride home to Hoboken after the devastating crash.

"It was a little confusing," John Brandon, who wanted to take the 4:45 p.m. train to Hoboken Thursday, said of his regular commute home to Hoboken.

Though he took the bus in to work Thursday morning, he heard about the train crash and added he "wasn't sure when I got here if the trains would be running or not. I took a gamble."

Brandon and other travelers said the station was largely empty compared to what they usually see during the afternoon commute home. Trains that are generally standing room only had empty seats when they pulled out of the station.

Jim Hickey, of Bayonne, said he was expecting to take a different train home, but that he was happy to hear that PATH service had resumed.

"Now that the train to Hoboken is running, I'm back to my normal commute," he said.

Most looking for trains to Hoboken Thursday evening said they were not afraid to take mass transit. "We don't know what happened yet," Brandon said of the accident.

You can't be afraid," Brandon said. "You have to go on with your life, no matter what."

Officials asked anyone with information about the crash to email witness@ntsb.gov.

NJ Advance Media reporters Marisa Iati, Jessica Mazzola, Larry Higgs, Craig McCarthy, Vicki Hyman and Patrick Villanova and Terrence T. McDonald of the Jersey Journal contributed reporting