A six-car Metro-North train carrying hundreds of passengers derailed in Midtown shortly after leaving Grand Central Terminal, causing delays during the evening rush hour. No injuries were reported.
"It was claustrophobic, very very hot and stuffy," said passenger Steven Feranga.
A railroad spokesman says Monday's 6 p.m. train on the Hudson Line due to arrive in Croton-Harmon at 6:57 p.m. had just left the terminal when one wheel on the second car went off the track near 59th Street and Park Avenue.
He says all of the passengers were transferred to another train and taken back to Grand Central or were evacuated through an emergency exit. A fire department spokesman says four pregnant women were taken to area hospitals to be evaluated.
Passengers said the air-conditioning was not working and that they suffered through suffocating heat while awaiting word on what happened and help from authorities. Passengers reported waiting for an hour or more to be removed from the train. The FDNY and members of the NYPD Emergency Services Unit helped evacuate the trains.
"There was a guy in my car who passed out," said passenger Eugene Stein.
There was no word on the cause of the derailment.
