Jury Finds MTA Largely to Blame for 2015 Valhalla Metro-North Crash
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A Westchester County jury found last week that the MTA was mainly at fault for causing the deadliest accident in the railroad’s history that killed five passengers and an SUV driver and injured dozens of commuters.
In a verdict that was announced July 16, the agency was found to have 71 percent of the liability for the Feb. 3, 2015, crash at the Commerce Street crossing in Valhalla. The northbound Metro-North Harlem line train struck an SUV, and the first car caught fire when the third rail was dislodged and pierced the vehicle’s gas tank.
Ben Rubinowitz, one of the two lead attorneys for the roughly 30 passengers injured or killed on the train, said the jury’s assignment of liability to Metro-North was significant. The remaining liability was assigned to Ellen Brody, 49, of Edgemont, the driver of the SUV.
“This is a tragedy that never should have happened,” Rubinowitz said. “The jury’s decision highlights the need for Metro-North to implement vital changes to ensure the safety and well-being of all passengers.”
Rubinowitz said that the operator of the train, engineer Steven Smalls, had an opportunity to slow the train once he saw a reflection on the tracks, which could have avoided the collision altogether, but failed to do so.
The other issue is that Metro-North is one of only two railroads in the world that has raised third rails, which lacked a safety device to cause the rail to break away when struck, he said. Instead, there were 12 sections of third rail, about 39 feet long and weighing 2,000 pounds each, that acted as spears, with one striking and puncturing the SUV’s gas tank, which sparked the fire in the train’s first car, Rubinowitz said.
“You can imagine it killed, destroyed anything in its path,” he said of the third rail.
The passengers aboard the train who were killed were Robert Dirks of Chappaqua; Joseph Nadol of Ossining, Aditya Tomar of Danbury, Conn.; and Walter Liedtke and Eric Vandercar of Bedford Hills.
Calls and e-mails left with the MTA were not returned to The Examiner last week. It released a one-sentence statement following the verdict.
“The MTA disagrees with this verdict and is considering all legal options,” the statement read.
During the trial, the MTA tried to place the blame on Ellen Brody for going onto the tracks and causing Smalls to make a difficult decision. A National Transportation Safety Board report the year following the accident placed more of the blame on
Alan Brody, the husband of Ellen Brody, said he was gratified for the victims and their families who were aboard the train when he learned of the verdict last week. Brody said it highlighted that the MTA must improve safety on its railroads and bring those safety features up to date to better protect the public.
“These people are actually empowered to the point of bringing this railroad system into the 21st century,” Brody said. “I don’t understand, you’re putting the lives of people at risk with a cavalier attitude they have towards the public safety is shocking, shocking, and it’s there in testimony.”
Brody also didn’t entirely spare the state Department of Transportation, contending that safety improvements on the road have also failed to materialize in the nearly 10 years since the accident.
Judge Paul Marx, who presided over the trial, consolidated the plaintiffs into one trial for liability purposes, Rubinowitz said. Rubinowitz and co-counsel Richard Steigman represented the victims aboard the train. Another attorney represented the Brody family.
Rubinowitz said there will be separate trials for each plaintiff to determine damages. It is not known when that may begin or how much could be awarded each of the victims and their families.
“The damages cases will be tried individually because everybody’s got different injuries,” he said.
Alan Brody said for him and his three children there have been difficult times, but they all are trying to move on with their lives as best they can.
“Their mom gave them enough love to last a lifetime,” Brody said. “She was such a wonderful mother; she gave them enough love to nourish them.”
Martin has more than 30 years experience covering local news in Westchester and Putnam counties, including a frequent focus on zoning and planning issues. He has been editor-in-chief of The Examiner since its inception in 2007. Read more from Martin’s editor-author bio here. Read Martin’s archived work here: https://www.theexaminernews.com/author/martin-wilbur2007/
