Two members of All Aboard Washington, a rail advocacy group, were among the three people who died Monday when an Amtrak train derailed during an inaugural trip from Seattle to Portland on a new route.

"I can't imagine them not having been on that run," said friend and fellow rail advocate Darleen Flem.

The Rail Passengers Association, a national rail advocacy group, said "reports have confirmed" the deaths of Jim Hamre and Zack Willhoite.

Willhoite, who worked for Pierce Transit, did information technology for All Aboard Washington, Flem said, as well as managed membership. Hamre, a retired civil engineer who had worked for the Washington State Department of Transportation, was one of the group's vice presidents.

Amtrak 501's run was to be a major event in Pacific Northwest rail history. The new line cost about $181 million to build and was expected to cut travel times and increase trip frequency.

But 13 cars derailed as the train was going about 80 mph in a 30 mph zone near Olympia, officials said. About 100 people were injured. Dramatic images showed one of the cars hanging over the edge of an overpass onto the southbound lanes of Interstate 5.

Advocates from All Aboard Washington's sister organization in Oregon were worried Monday about Hamre, but apparently didn't know Willhoite was aboard.

Donald Leap, with the Association of Oregon Rail and Transit Advocates, was at Portland's Union Station and trying to get in touch by calling. But he couldn't get through, he said.

"Jim was among the country's most-respected and effective rail advocates and a good friend and mentor to me. I will miss his counsel, and our community is poorer for his loss," Rail Passengers Association President Jim Mathews said in a statement. "Both Jim and Zack have been advocates of transit and passenger rail for decades, and we can't thank them enough for their work. Our thoughts are with their families at this time, as they work through this tragedy."

Jim Hamre and Zack Willhoite at the All Aboard Washington meeting in Pasco, September 16, 2017. Posted by All Aboard Washington on Tuesday, December 19, 2017

Flem, a member of the Washington group, said she last saw the two men Dec. 9, at All Aboard's annual meeting and auction. Hamre had brought his signature item, Cougar Gold cheese from the Washington State Creamery.

The two men were such train enthusiasts that they would travel the country to film trains coming and going, Flem said.

They were "nerds," she said. "I mean that in a loving way."

Jim Ryan of The Oregonian/OregonLive and The Associated Press contributed to his report.

-- Fedor Zarkhin

503-294-7674; @fedorzarkhin