Train stuck on Oregon tracks arrives at destination

EUGENE, Ore. (KGW/KMTR) – A train that had been stranded on the tracks since Sunday with 183 passengers on board finally made it to Eugene Tuesday, 37 hours after it hit a downed tree.

The train runs daily from Seattle to Los Angeles on what Amtrak calls its “Coast Starlight” route.

It hit the downed tree at about 6 p.m. on Sunday and came to a sudden stop just outside Oakridge, Oregon, jolting passengers but not injuring anyone.

Those on board were not allowed to get off of the train, and people sharing the experience on social media reported supply shortages and restless children.

They were originally told the delay would be two hours, but that turned into nearly two days as Snow and power outages made the rescue efforts difficult.

The train was towed into Eugene where the Red Cross provided food and supplies for passengers, many of whom still had a long way to get home.

Rebekah Dodson was one of the people stuck on train. She said, “We were really running out of food. We actually stopped right outside of Eugene to get pastries from the Lane County Police Department who picked them up for us so we could eat. So we didn’t have anything for breakfast. We were out. We were totally out. We had no supplies, no food, nothing.”

One passenger said, “Yeah, sitting on the train 40 hours, 40 plus, we’re just kinda excited to finally get off. It’s the first fresh air we’ve had in a while. They opened the windows a couple of times but other than that, we’ve just kinda been sitting the whole time.”

Emilie Wyrick said, “Not knowing how long we were gonna be on there… I would say that was probably the most frustrating part. They did a decent job of taking care of us but understandably they didn’t make any promises about time frames or anything like that.”

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