WASHINGTON — The fact that Metro knew it had problems that led to a derailment but didn’t act to fix the track problem that led to the August 6 incident has infuriated members of the Board of Directors, and leaves first responders frustrated as well.
Late Thursday afternoon, Metro’s Board of Directors issued a statement calling the delay in maintenance that led to the most recent derailment ‘totally unacceptable’, while Prince George’s County Fire Chief Marc Bashoor said he gets the sense that historically, Metro has been a safe system, but that over the course of time “It has become less safe”.
Bashoor is the chairman of the Fire Chiefs Committee at the Washington Council of Governments. Regarding the slipping safety record at Metro, he says “I think it goes back to the whole issue of critical infrastructure needing to be maintained constantly, and the government’s needing to make the investments to keep the system safe.”
Last month, Metro announced that a Fairfax County fire captain would be assigned to work in the transit agency’s rail control center to serve as a public safety liason in emergencies. Bashoor would like to see that position funded so that it would be filled on a 24/7 basis, but recently told the Washington Post “I’ll take the 40 hours a week, and we’ll begin with that.”
WTOP’s Kate Ryan contributed to this report.
