LIRR train stuck in tunnel leads to evacuations, widespread delays

About 900 passengers had to be evacuated from a Long Island Rail Road train after it struck debris and became disabled in an Amtrak tunnel beneath the East River Wednesday, authorities said.

The incident caused widespread disruptions across the LIRR, with many trains to Penn Station either being canceled or diverted to Grand Central Madison, according to the MTA.

MTA officials said two separate incidents contributed to the morning service issues. First, a train operated by NJ Transit, which uses a Queens rail yard, became disabled in one of the tunnels early Wednesday. Amtrak, which owns and maintains the tunnels, responded and was able to clear the train from the tunnel.

Then, an LIRR train passing through the tunnel struck debris left on the track, causing it to become disabled.

Using two rescue trains, the FDNY, along with Amtrak police and EMS personnel, evacuated about 900 LIRR passengers trapped in the tunnel. The rescue trains took the passengers to Penn Station. No injuries were reported, authorities said.

Service was slowly returning to normal service by midmorning, when the MTA said most trains were running close to schedule. Other trains were being diverted to Grand Central.

Scattered delays of up to 15 minutes were reported on the Babylon, Oyster Bay, Montauk and Ronkonkoma branches.

The loss of one of the four East River tunnels comes as another tunnel remains out of service while Amtrak carries out a three-year effort to rehabilitate two tunnels damaged in Superstorm Sandy.

Warning of the potential impact to LIRR service if a tunnel had to be taken out of service while one was already shut down, MTA officials implored Amtrak to limit its planned tunnel rehabilitation work to nights and weekends, allowing all tunnels to be available during the rush hours.

But Amtrak officials insisted that doing the work properly necessitated keeping one tunnel out of service around the clock for the duration of the project, which is expected to last into 2028.