A maintenance vehicle fire at New York's Penn Station early Friday injured five rail workers and triggered widespread transit disruptions ahead of the morning rush hour.
The blaze broke out on Track 11 inside a Hudson River tunnel around 1:30 a. m.
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, drawing an emergency response from local transit authorities and fire crews.
Emergency dispatchers received the initial call reporting a burning train car shortly after 1:30 a. m.
The response escalated to a second-alarm fire by 2:45 a. m.
, requiring 46 fire trucks and 141 personnel.
First responders brought the flames under control around 4 a. m.
and extinguished them completely.
Officials said five civilians required treatment, including two workers with serious injuries who were taken to Bellevue Hospital.
Three others declined medical attention at the scene. The cause remains under investigation.
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Service Disruptions
The incident heavily impacted regional rail networks, including the Long Island Rail Road, NJ Transit, and Amtrak.
The Metropolitan Transportation Authority announced LIRR service at Penn Station was suspended in both directions, diverting some trains to Grand Central Terminal while local subway lines cross-honored passenger tickets.
NJ Transit suspended all rail service between New York Penn Station and Newark Penn Station due to overhead wire damage.
The agency redirected Midtown Direct service to Hoboken and arranged for ticket cross-honoring on buses and the PATH system.
Amtrak reported major operational impacts.
In a travel advisory, the agency said all trains traveling through the New York area may experience delays of up to approximately one hour due to a temporary hold on tracks by local municipal services.
Amtrak temporarily suspended all rail movement between New York and New Jersey, leading to cancellations of certain trains bound for Massachusetts and Virginia.
Amtrak spokesman Marc Magliari said service was not expected to be restored until Friday afternoon.
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Transit crews continue working to repair damaged infrastructure and restore full tunnel capacity for delayed commuters.
