Weekend Metro Fire Kills Contractor, Injures 2 Working on Red Line

A welding accident in the Red Line Metrorail tunnel between Judiciary Square and Union Station led to the death of a contractor just after midnight on Sunday, according to a news release from the investigation team led by Metro's chief safety officer.

The contractor—Harold Ingram, 41, of New Jersey, and an employee of Holland, which provides welding services for transit systems and railroads—died after being struck by a piece of rail, according to the release. He was transported by emergency medical services to a local hospital, where he died of his injuries, according to a Metro statement.

In addition, two Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority employees—a supervisor and a worker—suffered serious but non-life-threatening injuries, and were transported to local hospitals, the release added.

All three were in the tunnel to perform scheduled weekend track work on the Red Line. They were working on a rail renewal project, which involves removing old sections of rail, installing new sections of rail, and welding, the release stated.

Just after midnight, a fire and a loud noise occurred about 70 to 80 feet from the injured workers, near heavy track equipment used to weld rail sections together into a continuous strip, according to the release.

The cause of the fire and noise has not yet been determined, and it is not yet known if there was a fluid leak or another mechanical issue, the release stated.

The fire—which workers put out with a hand-held fire extinguisher—caused a 40-foot section of rail to move, striking the three workers and leading to Ingram's death. It is not yet known what caused the piece of rail to move. The incident occurred about 400 feet from the Union Station platform, the release stated.

Metro began investigating the incident on Sunday, and notified the Tri-State Oversight Committee and the National Transportation Safety Board.

But, the NTSB won't be investigating the incident at this time (they will evaluate the report), "in part, because of the government shutdown," DCist reported.

Read more about DCist's attempt to find out more about the incident on DCist.com.