On, January 4, 2017, about 8:18 a.m. eastern standard time, Long Island Rail Road (LIRR) passenger train 2817, consisting of six cars, collided with the platform at the end of track 6 in the Atlantic Terminal in Brooklyn (a borough of New York City, New York). The lead end of the lead car came to rest on top of the concrete platform at the end of the track. As result of this accident, 108 people were injured. Damage was estimated at $5.3 million. The accident occurred inside the terminal and was not affected by the weather.

​We determined the probable cause of the Brooklyn, New York, accident was that the engineer of Long Island Rail Road train 2817 fell asleep due to his chronic fatigue. Contributing to his chronic fatigue was the engineer’s severe undiagnosed obstructive sleep apnea, and Long Island Rail Road’s failure to initiate obstructive sleep apnea screening for safety-sensitive personnel and refer at-risk safety-sensitive personnel for definitive obstructive sleep apnea testing and treatment before the accident. Further contributing to the accident was the Federal Railroad Administration’s failure to require railroads to medically screen employees in safety-sensitive positions for obstructive sleep apnea and other sleep disorders. Also contributing to the accident was the lack of either a device or a safety system that could have intervened to stop the train before the collision.​​