A Metro-North train leaving Grand Central Terminal during rush hour got stuck in a nearby tunnel for nearly an hour and a half, leaving hundreds of passengers sweating on a train without air conditioning during a heat wave in New York City.
The 7:21 p.m. Hudson Line train headed to Poughkeepsie got stuck for at least an hour and 20 minutes in the Park Avenue tunnel when the front engine quit, according to NBC Nightly News producer Rob Kaplan, who was on the train.
There was no air-conditioning, and the train quickly became very hot and uncomfortable. A conductor and a volunteer passenger walked through the train handing out water.
One attempt to attach the engine from the south and tow the train back to Grand Central failed, Kaplan said. Eventually, an engine attached from the north and towed the train up to 125th Street, where passengers were transferred to a waiting train.
At least one passenger needed assistance on board and received medical attention at 125th Street.
A message was left with Metro-North.
