Lightning Strike Causes 600 Feet Of Overhead Wire To Fall, Causing Train Delays Monday

From Metro-North:

An Explanation For This Morning's (Monday, June 25) Delays On the New Haven Line

The average delays of 30 minutes that you may have experienced this morning resulted from damage to the overhead system of wires that power New Haven Line trains in the vicinity of Southport Station.

At approximately 8:30 AM, a lightning strike caused 600 feet of wire to come down, preventing us from operating on that track. The location of this incident was particularly difficult. Although this is a 4-track area, two tracks are currently out of service to accommodate work to replace the catenary system in that area. Until the outdated, century-old catenary system is fully replaced with a system that is newer and features more reliable technology, the New Haven Line will be vulnerable to service disruptions because of wire damage, as well as increased impact of any operating problems in this area, due to the reduced capacity during construction.

While emergency crews worked to remove the damaged wire, emergency equipment was dispatched to assist and help move two trains that were stranded in that section, and clear the track for service once the damaged wire was removed. Unfortunately, as railroad employees worked to resolve this issue, the 7:34 AM train from Grand Central to Danbury became disabled east of Stamford, causing additional delays in that area. The damaged wire was removed and the track was cleared by 11 AM. Regular service was restored shortly therafter.

We regret any inconvenience you may have experienced due to this incident and thank you for your patience.