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NTSB ADVISORY
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National Transportation Safety Board
Washington, DC 20594
July 8, 2009
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NTSB RELEASES FACTUAL INFORMATION ON ITS INVESTIGATION OF
THE MONORAIL COLLISION AT WALT DISNEY WORLD
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The National Transportation Safety Board has developed the
following factual information from its investigation of the
collision of two trains on the monorail system at Walt
Disney World in Lake Buena Vista, Florida, that occurred
early Sunday morning:
At about 2 a.m. on July 5th, a Walt Disney World monorail
train, designated the Pink train, backed into another
monorail train, designated the Purple train, near the Ticket
and Transportation Center (TTC) monorail station. The
operator of the Purple train was fatally injured; the six
passengers on that train were treated at the scene. The
operator of the Pink train, who was transported to the
hospital, treated and released, was the only one aboard that
train at the time of the collision.
Prior to the accident, the Pink train had been instructed to
detrain all passengers at the TTC station and then to
operate without passengers past the station and a switch to
a point where the train could be backed through the track
switch from the Epcot loop over to the Magic Kingdom loop.
The operator of the Pink train moved the train past the
track switch and stopped.
The Pink train was then instructed to back through the track
switch, towards the Magic Kingdom loop. At about the same
time, the Purple train, which was inbound to the TTC
station, was instructed to stop at the station to detrain
passengers. For undetermined reasons that are currently
under investigaton, the switch had not changed position
needed to allow the Pink train to be routed to the Magic
Kingdom loop, which resulted in the Pink train backing down
the same track it had just come from, putting it on a
collision course with the Purple train. The Pink train
passed through the TTC station and struck the Purple train
while it was outside the station.
There are indications that the operator of the Purple train
had brought the train to a stop and had attempted to put the
train in reverse prior to the collision. To this point in
the investigation, no anomalies or malfunctions have been
found with the automatic train stop system or with any
mechanical components of the switch or with either of the
trains.
The on-scene phase of the investigation is expected to
continue for several days.
The parties to the investigation are Walt Disney World, the
Occupational Safety and Health Administration, the Orange
County Sherriff's Office, and the Transportation and
Communications International Union.
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