BRONX, NY — The engineer in a 2013 train derailment that killed four people filed a $10 million lawsuit Thursday against Metro-North, blaming the commuter rail for the incident, PIX11 reports.
Among the claims, engineer William Rockefeller says Metro-North should have equipped the Manhattan-bound train with automatic braking system that would have stopped the train when it exceeded the posted speed.
Rockefeller allegedly fell asleep at the controls of a Metro-North train that derailed in December 2013, killing four people and injuring 70.
The National Transportation Safety Board said at the time Rockefeller fell asleep because of an un-diagnosed sleep apnea combined with a shift in his work schedule. The combination allegedly caused him to take a 30 mph curve at 82 mph.
The NTSB also found that Rockefeller consistently broke the speed limit during several tests before the crash. Data recorders were used to look at train speeds. He broke the speed limit on four of six runs that were tested.
This is a developing story.
